Moldova condemns Russia’s organization of parliamentary elections in Transnistrian region at OSCE

The Republic of Moldova condemned, during the OSCE Permanent Council, the organization by the Russian Federation of State Duma elections in the Transnistrian region from September 18–20, 2026, without the consent of the constitutional authorities of Chișinău.

The position of the Republic of Moldova was presented at the 1,578th meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council, held on September 24.

Moldova’s Permanent Representative to the OSCE Victoria Roșa emphasized that Chișinău authorities had clearly and repeatedly informed the Russian side, before the vote, that polling stations could not be organized in the Transnistrian region without the consent of the constitutional authorities of the Republic of Moldova.

According to the Moldovan delegation, the Russian Federation organized 16 polling stations for the State Duma elections in the Transnistrian region without the consent of the constitutional authorities.

Roșa emphasized that the position of the Republic of Moldova had been clearly and repeatedly communicated to the Russian side before the vote, but was ignored. She reiterated that the organization by a foreign state of an electoral process on the sovereign territory of the Republic of Moldova, outside the control of and without the consent of the constitutional authorities, constitutes a violation of the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and contravenes international law.

The Republic of Moldova drew the attention of OSCE participating States to the fact that such actions cannot be viewed in isolation. The delegation from Chișinău noted that the Russian Federation organized the same vote in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, as well as in the occupied regions of Georgia.

In this context, the Republic of Moldova reiterated the need to respect the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and internationally recognized borders of all OSCE participating States.

Previously, on September 21, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the organization by the Russian Federation of State Duma elections in the Transnistrian region, without the consent of the constitutional authorities in Chișinău, constituted a violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova.

From September 18–20, 2026, parliamentary elections for the State Duma, the lower house of the Federal Assembly, were held in Russia.