Moldova's government falls as prime minister resigns over corruption scandal
Moldovan Prime Minister Alexandru Munteanu resigned on Friday, saying he could no longer carry out his mandate in line with his principles. Under Moldova’s system, the prime minister’s departure brings down the entire government; Munteanu, in office since November 2025, will stay on in a caretaker role until a successor is named.
The resignation follows a corruption scandal at MoldATSA, the state-owned air-navigation company, involving allegations of fabricated credentials for its director and inflated salary payments to a relative of the president. Parliament has set up a special committee to examine management of state firms.
Munteanu belongs to the pro-European Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS), which won elections in September 2025 and has anchored Moldova’s bid for EU membership. President Maia Sandu will consult parliamentary groups and nominate a new prime minister. Because PAS retains its majority, the crisis is more likely to reshuffle the cabinet than to shift Moldova’s westward course — but in a country the Kremlin has repeatedly sought to pull back into its orbit, any instability in the governing bloc carries outsized stakes.