Moldova's parliament has elected financier Vasile Tofan as the country's new prime minister, approving him by 53 votes to 21 on Tuesday. Tofan, a political independent backed by President Maia Sandu and her pro-European Party of Action and Solidarity, replaces Alexandru Munteanu, who resigned after just eight months in office without giving a clear reason. The new premier has pledged to revive Moldova's economy — one of Europe's poorest — by cutting budget deficits and privatising state-owned companies, while pursuing a timeline that aims to conclude an EU accession deal by 2028 and achieve full membership by 2030; Moldova and Ukraine were granted EU candidate status together in 2022 and formally opened membership talks last month.