Bangladesh, July 1 -- In a development heightening Moldovas already complex geopolitical climate, Russia has accused the European Union of aiding the creation of a “liberal dictatorship” in the small Eastern European state, following the controversial arrest and prosecution of Yevgenia Gutsul, the elected governor of the autonomous region of Gagauzia. Moscows Foreign Ministry and various opposition figures in Moldova have denounced the legal proceedings against Gutsul as a politically motivated attempt to suppress dissent and silence pro-Russian sentiment within the country.

On July 1, the Moldovan Prosecutors Office officially requested a nine-year prison sentence for Gutsul, along with a five-year ban from holding public of...