Moldovans voted, by a razor-thin majority, in favour of securing the country’s path toward European Union membership by 2030, electoral data showed on Monday, after the pro-Western president accused “criminal groups” of trying to undermine the vote in the former Soviet republic.

The “No” vote appeared to be ahead until the last few thousand votes were counted.

With 99.41 percent of votes counted in the EU referendum held Sunday, the “Yes” vote stood at 50.39 percent and the “No” vote at 49.61 percent, according to the Central Electoral Commission.

In the presidential race that was held at the same time, President Maia Sandu won the first round with 42 percent of the vote in a field of 11, short of an outright majority. She will face Alexandr Stoianoglo, a Russia-friendly former prosecutor general who outperformed polls with around 26 percent of the vote, in a runoff on November 3.

On Monday, Sandu reiterated claims that unprecedented voter fraud and foreign interference had undermined the voting, calling it a “vile attack” on Moldova’s sovereignty.

“Unfortunately, the justice system failed to do enough to prevent vote-rigging and corruption," she told a news conference. “Here, too, we must draw a line, correct what went wrong, and learn the lesson. We heard you: we know we must do more to fight corruption.”

Moldovan authorities claim that Moscow has intensified a “hybrid war” campaign to destabilise the country and derail its EU path. The allegations include funding pro-Moscow opposition groups, spreading disinformation, meddling in local elections and backing a major vote-buying scheme.

Russia has repeatedly denied interfering, and, in turn, called on Sandu to "present evidence" of election interference in the country of 2.6 million people and alleged "anomalies" in Moldova's vote count.

The EU defended Sandu, with president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen hailing the outcome of the referendum in a post on X: "In the face of Russia's hybrid tactics, Moldova shows that it is independent, it is strong and it wants a European future!"

Moldova applied to join the EU in the wake of the outbreak of Russia’s war with Ukraine in February 2022, and was granted candidate status , alongside Ukraine. Membership negotiations were agreed to start in June. (Agencies)