Moldova's parliament

After Russia announced on Tuesday evening that it had banned three pro-European Moldovan MPs and the Interior Minister, the targeted politicians said they had no plans to go there anyway.

The authorities in Moscow banned Interior Minister Ana Revenco and three deputies of the Action and Solidarity Party, PAS, Oazu Nantoi, Olesea Stamate and Lilian Carp.

Moldovan Prime Minister Pavel Filip confirmed on Wednesday night that he received two water cannon trucks used to disperse protesters during demonstrations as a "gift" from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his visit to Moldova last week.

Moldova's parliament speaker Andrian Candu said on Tuesday evening that the country will soon start building the Ungheni-Chisinau pipeline section which will link Moldova to the European energy network via Romania "for sure".

The first section of the pipeline between Iasi in Romania and Ungheni in Moldova over the Prut river was inaugurated in August 2014.

About 30 of the 101 deputies in Moldova's parliament, from the ruling pro-Western parties, on Wednesday issued a statement accusing Russia of launching "attacks on Moldova's information security and abusive interference in the political life of the country."

With the support of 55 out of 101 MPs, Moldova's parliament on Thursday named Vitalie Pirlog, a man with strong Communist Party links, as the new head of the country's security and intelligence service, the SIS.

Moldova's parliament adopted a declaration on Friday, asking Russia to withdraw its troops from the breakaway region of Transnistria where they have been deployed for 25 years.

The Parliament in Chisinau will discuss on Friday a draft bill granting a status of a 'national-cultural region' to Taraclia, an area in southwestern Moldova with predominantly ethnic Bulgarian population, BGNES reported.

Taraclia is home to more than 30,000 ethnic Bulgarians - the largest ethnic Bulgarian community in Moldova.

During a two-day official visit to neighbouring Moldova, Romania's new President, Klaus Iohannis, said Romania remains an "anchor of stability in the region" as well as a "partner of neighbouring Moldova and Ukraine on their path to Europe".

Moldova's parliament on Thursday voted down the government proposed by Prime Minister Iurie Leanca, more than two months after general elections gave a narrow victory to pro-European Union parties.