CHISINAU, November 12. /TASS/. A significant portion of Moldova’s population favors constructive relations with Russia, as evidenced by the country’s presidential election, Russian Ambassador to Chisinau Oleg Ozerov told TASS following a meeting at the Moldovan Foreign Ministry.

"I have an absolutely positive attitude towards the Moldovan citizens. A significant segment of the population is interested in developing relations with Russia - this is what I have found during my recent contacts with ordinary people, as well as public and political representatives [of Moldova]. And the recent election also shows that a significant portion of the country’s population supports constructive relations between Moldova and Russia," the diplomat said.

Ozerov said he had a substantive meeting in the Foreign Ministry. It helped to clarify the parties’ approaches to challenging and pressing issues of bilateral relations. "It was a lengthy, detailed parsing of all the issues concerning the embassy’s workflow and bilateral relations in general," Ozerov added.

Following the meeting, the Moldovan Foreign Ministry said it had delivered Ozerov a formal note of protest following allegations of election meddling.

Relations between Russia and Moldova became strained in 2021, when Maia Sandu began her presidential term with a refusal to participate in summits of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), and her ruling Party of Action and Solidarity started denouncing CIS agreements. In 2022, Moscow accused Chisinau of unfriendly actions. In response, Moldova blamed interference in its internal affairs on Russia, demanding the expulsion of several dozen employees of the Russian embassy, and later faced retaliation from the Russian side. Moscow urged Chisinau to be responsive to the interests of its own citizens and to stop obstructing the development of Russian-Moldovan relations.