Most recently, on Wednesday, a "congress of deputies of all levels" convened in Tiraspol, Transnistria's nominal capital, and passed a resolution to ask Russia for protection in the face of "increasing pressure" and the "economic war" unleashed by Moldova.

The majority of Moldovans are pro-Europe, many hold Romanian — and therefore EU — passports, and hundreds of thousands work in EU countries.

But Pro-Russian parties, which are financed among others by the Israel-based pro-Russian oligarch Ilan Shor, are waging bitter campaigns against pro-EU President Maia Sandu and the pro-Western government of Prime Minister Dorin Recean. Social media there are also awash with pro-Russian propaganda and disinformation.

A presidential election and a referendum on the country's accession to the EU are due to be held this fall. According to Moldovan Foreign Minister Mihai Popsoi, the authorities are "already seeing attempts to destabilize the situation" in the country.