Moldova

SOFIA, July 30 (Xinhua) -- A multinational military exercise involving army units from eight countries kicked off in Bulgaria on Monday, the country's Defense Ministry said.

Moldova lawmakers on Friday, the last day before the summer recess, voted to reschedule the next parliamentary elections to February 24, 2019. Initially, the election should have taken place by the end of November.

The decision comes after the majority in parliament voted no less than 50 draft bills in just two days - Thursday and Friday.

Moldova is the most exposed country in Eastern Europe to Russian propaganda, owing to the dominance of Russian-language media, the Russian orientation of the main Church, poverty and lack of trust in the political class, according to a study called "Resistance to disinformation in Central and Eastern Europe".

The Romanian presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2019 concerns every Romanian, and it should not be politicised, Minister-delegate for European Affairs Victor Negrescu said on Thursday.

Moldova authorities told BIRN that they are in a dialogue with Israel on moving their Israel embassy to Jerusalem from Tel-Aviv - but emphasized that such an important decision is still in the "analysis" stage.

Higher prices of natural gas and electricity from the beginning of July, as well as of the fuel of the last few months, will not make the holidays more expensive this summer, commented for Darik Branimir Milanov, a member of the management board of the Bulgarian Hotel and Restaurant Association.

Romania attaches great importance to speeding up the economic integration and political association of the Republic of Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine with the European Union, Romania's Foreign Ministry (MAE) quotes Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu as saying at an EU meeting on Monday.

The cancellation of the results of the mayoral election, won last month by Andrei Nastase, was the straw that broke the camel's back for many people in Moldova.

The initial ruling of a local court in Chisinau on June 20 was confirmed on June 25 by the Supreme Court of Justice.

At a working dinner of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels, Belgium, on Wednesday, part of a NATO summit meeting there, Romania's Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu highlighted the importance of NATO continuing its support for its eastern partners - Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova.

NATO member states meeting in Brussels have called on Russia to respect the internationally recognized borders of Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia and to withdraw its soldiers from all three countries - meaning Transnistria, Crimea, eastern Ukraine, Abkhazia and South Ossetia.