Moldovan lawmakers on Thursday approved a new minority government controlled by the Socialist Party of pro-Russian President Igor Dodon, two days after the dissolution of a pro-European government.
The former Soviet republic between Romania and Ukraine has been rocked by political crises in recent years linked to sharp divisions between pro-European parties and those who favour closer ties with Moscow.
The pro-Russian Socialist Party has only 36 lawmakers in the 101-seat parliament but managed to form a government with support from 27 lawmakers of the Democratic Party led by exiled oligarch Vlad Plahotniuc.
A total of 62 lawmakers approved the new government with 47-year-old technocrat Ion Chicu as prime minister. Six of the 11 cabinet members previously served as Dodon's aides.
Dodon signed a decree on the new government and lawmakers swore an oath to formally take power, his press service said.
New prime minister Chicu is not a member of the Socialist Party. He is an economist who ..
