U.S. expresses concern over Russian interference in Romania's presidential election

The U.S. expressed concern over reports from Romanian intelligence indicating Russian interference in Romania's presidential election. The reports detail a social media campaign that boosted pro-Russian candidate Călin Georgescu's popularity just before the election. Georgescu, who won the first round with over 22% of the vote, was relatively unknown prior to the campaign. The reports suggest a coordinated effort involving thousands of social media accounts, with some dormant since 2016, to promote his candidacy. Georgescu claims the release of these reports aims to undermine his campaign ahead of the second round of voting. Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, who finished third, called for accountability regarding the alleged manipulation of the election process.