In near-final results, a pro-Russian party was several points ahead of pro-EU parties after Sunday's election. The country on the EU's eastern border is facing an uncertain future balancing between Brussels and Moscow.
Image: Reuters/V. Culiomza
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Moldova's pro-Russian opposition Socialist party claimed a narrow lead, but no majority, in the country's national elections after 99 ballots had been counted on Monday with 31.2 percent of the vote.
The pro-European ACUM garnered 26.6 percent of Sunday's ballots and the incumbent Democratic Party was in third place at 23.8 precent.
President Igor Dodon, formerly the leader of the Socialist party, estimated that "risk is high that it could come to a snap election in the coming few months."
In turn, Democratic Party leader, oligarch Vlad Plahotniuc, said his faction was ready to launch coalition talks and "form a functioning government and parliamentary majority for the people."
Dodon has pledged to renegotiate a 2014 association agreement with the European Union if his party wins the vote. The Democratic Party, on the other hand, wants even closer ties to the bloc.
The Democratic Party-led coalition government has, however, lost support following a string of corruption scandals. It has also been accused of trying to rig the political system in its favor by introducing votes on direct mandates alongside votes on party lists.
Allegations of fraud, corruption and poisonings had marred the run-up to the vote, with Dodon describing the election campaign as "one of the dirtiest in our entire history."
Moldova: A country without parents
Twenty-five years after independence, Moldova remains one of the poorest countries of the ex-Soviet republics. Better money abroad has caused tens of thousands of parents to leave Moldova — and their children — behind.
Image: Andrea Diefenbach/Kehrer-Verlag
Left behind
Tanya moved to Italy five years ago where she works as a caregiver for the elderly and earns about 850 euros ($960) a month. But her three daughters — Karolina, Sabrina and Olga — were left behind in Moldova. They were 8, 9 and 12 years old, respectively, when she left.
Image: Andrea Diefenbach/Kehrer-Verlag
On the phone with mom
The girls initially lived alone at first, even though the oldest was only 12 years old. After a time, they began living with various people, to whom their mother regularly sent money.
Image: Andrea Diefenbach/Kehrer-Verlag
Meals apart
Now the eldest daughter, Olga, is finishing high school in Chisinau, while Sabrina and Karolina have joined their mother in Italy.
Image: Andrea Diefenbach/Kehrer-Verlag
Help from the grandmother
For the past seven years, Katalina's parents have barely been home. Her parents found jobs in Moscow and later moved to Italy after receiving work visas. Katalina's grandmother lived in a different village, but she eventually moved in with Katalina and her brother, Victor, to look after them.
Image: Andrea Diefenbach/Kehrer-Verlag
Reunited at last
Ottilia was barely a year old when her parents left Moldova. Her mother and father paid 4,000 euros each to get into Italy without proper documents. The girl didn't see them for five years and lived with her grandmother, who she called "mom." A year ago, Ottilia's parents managed to get a residence permit in Italy and brought their daughter to live with them.
Image: Andrea Diefenbach/Kehrer-Verlag
Hard work
Lilia moved to the West with her husband eight years ago. The couple had to work hard to repay the debt they took on to pay for the illegal border-crossing. Their daughters Nadia and Alina were 9 and 6 at the time.
Image: Andrea Diefenbach/Kehrer-Verlag
Parcels from abroad
Lilia sent parcels to her children three times a month. The family is reunited now, but it has come at a high price — the "visas" for the children cost 1,500 euros each.
Image: Andrea Diefenbach/Kehrer-Verlag
Childhood without parents
German photographer Andrea Diefenbach tells the story of Moldovan children in her book "Country without parents," published in German by Kehrer-Verlag.
Image: Andrea Diefenbach/Kehrer-Verlag
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Some 3.27 million people were eligible to vote on who would occupy the parliament's 101 seats.
Moldova is one of the poorest and most corrupt countries in Europe and only recently recovered from a devastating banking scandal in 2014. The European Parliament has declared it "a state captured by oligarchic interests."
The landlocked country borders Ukraine to the east and EU-member Romania to the west.
