INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The Kremlin on Monday cast doubt on the outcomes of Romanias presidential election, where a pro-EU centrist beat a far-right rival and
self-professed Trump admirer.The elections were odd, to say the least, Kremlin representative Dmitry Peskov told press reporters when asked
to discuss the vote.Bucharest Mayor Nicuor Dan won Sundays tense runoff, defeating nationalist prospect George Simion in a race seen as
crucial for the EU and NATO member state that surrounds war-torn Ukraine.Telegram founder Pavel Durov on Sunday accused French intelligence
chief Nicolas Lerner of pressing him to prohibit conservative Romanian accounts ahead of the vote, a claim that Romanias federal government
connected to a viral disinformation campaign with alleged Russian fingerprints.Frances foreign intelligence agency also strongly refuted
Durovs claims.Former far-right frontrunner, Clin Georgescu, was disallowed from Sundays vote after Romanias Constitutional Court annulled
Authorities suspect Georgescu of ties to Russia, which both he and the Kremlin deny.We understand the story of the candidate who had the
best possibility and who was merely eliminated from the race without [Romanian authorities] even troubling to come up with a reason, Peskov
said, calling Dans success one that happened in the lack of the favorite.AFP contributed reporting.
