Igor Munteanu

All the main political parties in Moldova on Wednesday or Thursday submitted their lists of candidates to the Central Electoral Commission for the parliamentary elections due on February 24.

Under the new and controversial "mixed" electoral system, half the winning candidates for the 101 seats will come from party lists and half will be elected in constituencies.

Moldovan Prime Minister Pavel Filip on Thursday said that compulsory military service will be gradually abolished by 2021, as Moldova makes the switch to a purely professional army.

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.