MOSCOW, November 25. /TASS/. The Kremlin is monitoring Romania’s presidential election but refrains from making any predictions, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"As of now, I would not give any forecasts," he said in response to a question about whether the results of the vote were surprising for Moscow and how the Russian authorities assess the prospects of Calin Georgescu, an unaffiliated candidate, to maintain his lead in the second round. "Besides, we cannot really say we are familiar with this candidate’s stance on relations with our country."

The spokesman noted that Russia is well aware of Romania’s current government’s policy. "It is unfriendly towards us," he said. "Next, we will naturally monitor the electoral process and see who becomes the winner."

According to preliminary data, Georgescu, who is leading in the race, has garnered 22.59% of the vote, while Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu received 19.55%. George Simion, leader of the Alliance for the Union of Romanians nationalist party, won 13.94% of the vote.

Georgescu was previously a member of the Alliance for the Union of Romanians, which he later left. He is reserved about Romania’s NATO membership and has been cautiously pushing for normalization with Russia. For instance, the politician said that conflicts such as the one in Ukraine are waged in the interests of the US. Simion, who is ranked fourth among the candidates in terms of polling, welcomed Georgescu’s entry into the second round of the election scheduled for December 8.