Moldova’s prime minister quits, triggering government’s resignation

Alexandru Munteanu’s resignation came as pressure has intensified over alleged corruption in a state-owned company.Moldova’s Prime Minister Alexandru Munteanu has resigned from a position he has held since November, in a surprise announcement that also triggered the resignation of the government.“The moment I realized that I could no longer carry out my mandate in accordance with ‌my principles and convictions, I chose to step down,” Munteanu said in a post on social media on Friday.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Moldova election results: Who won and did the diaspora play a role?list 2 of 3Moldova’s vote is one more sign of Russia’s weakness in its ‘near abroad’list 3 of 3EU officially launches Ukraine and Moldova accession processend of list“I will continue to ⁠serve my country from whatever position I may hold,” he added.Munteanu, 65, gave no further details.The move is a challenge for President Maia Sandu and her ruling pro-European Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS), now in its second consecutive term.According to Moldova’s parliamentary procedure, Sandu will hold consultations with parliamentary groups and then nominate ⁠a candidate for prime minister.Sandu said on Friday that Munteanu will continue to act in his role until ‌a new prime minister is appointed “quickly”. She said consultations will begin next week before appointing a new candidate.Munteanu was ⁠appointed following parliamentary elections in September 2025 in which PAS resoundingly defeated a Russia-leaning rival and won a renewed mandate to pursue Moldova’s European ⁠Union (EU) drive.Before that, he worked outside Moldova for some 20 years, including for ⁠the World Bank.Fallout over corruption scandalPresident Sandu on Friday denied that Munteanu had been restricted in his government action.“Speculation that he wanted to combat abuses but was not permitted to do so is false,” Sandu told a news conference.