Moldovan Parliament Approves Law Banning Russian News Programs

CHISINAU (Sputnik) - The Moldovan parliament on Thursday approved a law banning Russian news programs in the final reading, Speaker Igor Grosu said on Thursday.

"The draft on amendments to legislative acts was approved in the second [final] reading by the votes of 55 lawmakers," Grosu said at the parliament session.

Earlier, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko said that Moldova's possible withdrawal from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) would be a wrong step, as it would have a negative effect on the country's economy.

Within the commonwealth, there are also agreements on migration and social security, and by withdrawing from these agreements, Moldova will harm itself more than anyone else, the diplomat said.

Moldova, bordering with Ukraine and having a large share of Ukrainian nationals in the breakaway region of Transnistria, introduced the state of emergency on 24 February, immediately after Russia launched its military operation. Two month later, Transnistria has been shattered by explosions, with a series of blasts occurring in the building of the Ministry of State Security in the Transnistrian capital of Tiraspol. Next day, two more explosions hit the Maiac town in the Grigoriopol district, with no casualties reported.

Transnistria, 60% of whose population is Russian and Ukrainian, has been seeking to secede from Moldova since the collapse of the Soviet Union, fearing that Moldova would integrate with Romania. In 1992, after a failed attempt by the Moldovan authorities to solve the issue by force, Transnistria became a territory de facto not controlled by Chisinau.