The European Union's executive body says Moldova will receive up to 100 million euros ($106 million) in EU aid in order to meet the former Soviet republic's most pressing financing needs.
The European Commission said on January 13 that Moldova, Europe's poorest country, will be offered up to 40 million euros in grants and up to 60 million euros in medium-term loans "at favorable financing conditions."
"This assistance will help Moldova meet its most immediate financing needs and stabilize its economy," Valdis Dombrovskis, the EU's vice president for the euro and social dialogue, said in a statement.
The commission said in its statement that Moldova continues to face pressing challenges, including "corruption and poor governance, which have contributed to a weakening of the fiscal and balance of payments positions and a slowdown in economic growth."
It also said Chisinau must "thoroughly investigate" the approximately $1 billion that vanished from Moldovan banks before the 2014 parliamentary elections.
The fraud, which took place under the watch of a pro-EU government, is seen as having harmed the reputations of pro-Western politicians.
Popular anger over the scandal is widely seen as having helped propel Igor Dodon, the pro-Russian leader of the Socialist Party, to Moldova's presidency in November.
