Moldovans vote to join European Union

Voters in Moldova, a small country bordering Ukraine, voted by a slim margin to join the European Union. Though accession talks began only a few months ago and joining would not happen for years, the vote hinders Russia's attempts to draw the nation of 3 million people back into its own sphere of influence. But it was much closer than expected: though polls put the Yes vote way ahead only weeks ago, Russia had reportedly spent vast sums to thumb the scales and very nearly succeeded. The "bots" on Twitter and Reddit were even declaring victory in its favor; today they are oddly silent.

Sunday's twin votes, which took place after persistent allegations of election meddling, were seen as a test of the southeast European nation's aspirations to join the EU by 2030 and escape Moscow's orbit for good.

Moldova's future has been in the spotlight since Russia's invasion of neighbouring Ukraine to the east. Russia maintains a small contingent of troops stationed as peacekeepers on Moldova's breakaway region of Transdniestria.

In the run-up to Sunday's referendum, polls had shown clear majority support for joining the EU. A "yes" result means a clause will be added to the constitution defining EU accession as a goal.

Next comes a runoff vote in the presidential election. The pro-European incumbent Maia Sandu did best in this weekend's preliminary, but the eliminated candidates represented more than a third of the vote and her more Russia-friendly opponent also did better than expected.