Igor Dodon, who won the presidential elections organized in the Republic of Moldova in mid-November, is poised to withdraw former Romanian President Traian Basescu's the Moldovan citizenship, as he promised in the electoral campaign.

He will cancel Basescu’s citizenship as soon as he will take over as President, Dodon said during a TV show, reports Agora.md.

“The procedure for granting citizenship was violated. And this will be the main reason for the citizenship’s cancellation. If Basescu wants to become a citizen of Moldova, he should do it legally,” Dodon said.

Traian Basescu and his wife and Maria were granted Moldovan citizenship in June this year, via a decree signed by the Republic of Moldova’s President at that time, Nicolae Timofti. They took the oath in early-November just in time for Basescu to vote in the second round of the presidential elections in Moldova, in which he openly supported pro-European candidate Maia Sandu, Dodon's opponent.

Just one day after the Presidential elections in Moldova, Traian Basescu said that he would sue Igor Dodon if he decided to withdraw his Moldovan citizenship.

Igor Dodon should be sworn in as Moldova's President on December 23. His opponent Maia Sandu challenged the election results at Moldova's Constitutional Court on December 13. She argued that the elections were not free and fair. However, the Court validated the election results.

Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com