Russian strikes on Ukraine spotlight Moldova’s energy woes

By STEPHEN McGRATH and CRISTIAN JARDAN
Associated Press

CHISINAU, Moldova (AP) — Massive blackouts that temporarily hit more than a half-dozen cities across Moldova this week have highlighted the impact Russia’s war in Ukraine is having on Europe’s poorest country. The power outages happened Tuesday as the Russian military pounded infrastructure targets across the border in Ukraine. The European Union pledged 250 million euros (nearly $260 million) less than a week earlier to help the former Soviet republic after Russia halved its natural gas supply. The crisis was compounded when a separatist region of Moldova where Russia bases around 1,500 troops cut electricity to other parts of the country. Moldova became a candidate for EU membership in June on the same day neighboring Ukraine did.