CHISINAU -- Former Moldovan President Petru Lucinschi says his country will be "thrown back into the past" if the Communist Party returns to power after recent inconclusive elections, RFE/RL's Moldovan Service reports.
Lucinschi, president from 1997-2001, told RFE/RL today the period of Communist rule that began after his term and ended in 2009 was one of "stagnation" and "demagoguery" that should not be repeated.
His remarks came a day after about 1,000 people rallied in the capital, Chisinau, to demand a continuation of the pro-Western rule that lasted from 2009 until early elections were called because of parliament's repeated failure to elect a new head of state.
After the November 28 elections, the three non-Communist parties of the Alliance for European Integration (AIE) won enough parliamentary seats to form a majority coalition.
But one of those parties, led by Communist Party defector Marian Lupu, says it cannot rule out an alliance with the Communists to form a government.
Lupu, who left the Communists in 2009, is more pro-Russian than the other two AIE leaders and has been critical of their pro-European and pro-Romanian policies during the last year when the AIE was in power.
Lupu has warned repeatedly that the country should maintain good ties with Russia. His Democratic Party has signed a cooperation agreement with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's United Russia party.
The four parties to be represented in the new parliament are currently in negotiations on forming a new government.
The EU has encouraged the three pro-European parties that form the AIE to continue their alliance.
Lucinschi, president from 1997-2001, told RFE/RL today the period of Communist rule that began after his term and ended in 2009 was one of "stagnation" and "demagoguery" that should not be repeated.
His remarks came a day after about 1,000 people rallied in the capital, Chisinau, to demand a continuation of the pro-Western rule that lasted from 2009 until early elections were called because of parliament's repeated failure to elect a new head of state.
After the November 28 elections, the three non-Communist parties of the Alliance for European Integration (AIE) won enough parliamentary seats to form a majority coalition.
But one of those parties, led by Communist Party defector Marian Lupu, says it cannot rule out an alliance with the Communists to form a government.
Lupu, who left the Communists in 2009, is more pro-Russian than the other two AIE leaders and has been critical of their pro-European and pro-Romanian policies during the last year when the AIE was in power.
Lupu has warned repeatedly that the country should maintain good ties with Russia. His Democratic Party has signed a cooperation agreement with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's United Russia party.
The four parties to be represented in the new parliament are currently in negotiations on forming a new government.
The EU has encouraged the three pro-European parties that form the AIE to continue their alliance.
