With a GDP of just over $6 billion and GDP per capita of some $2,200, Moldova is among the poorest countries in Europe. Some 20 percent of the population live below the poverty line.. Moldova’s official population (not counting Transdniestria) is approximately 3.5 million.

1. Demands that Members of Parliament devote their full attention to their parliamentary duties. Parliamentary duties should not be adversely affected by paid sideline activities. Sideline activities of Members of Parliament have reached such a scale that they are having a detrimental effect on democracy and parliamentary duties. Many representatives use their political mandate to obtain lucrative sideline jobs for personal enrichment. However, the greatest danger that sideline activities pose to democracy is that they are frequently associated with lobbyism, or even corruption.

On September 24, Germans head to the polls in a parliamentary vote that will determine whether Angela Merkel remains Chancellor. Germany has a notoriously complex voting system for electing its Bundestag, or Lower House. The system seeks to combine the benefits of both direct and proportional representation.

This year, 61.5 million people age 18 and above are eligible to vote in the national election, according to figures from Germany's Federal Statistics Office.

The following 73 countries contend that Russia is an occupying power in Crimea

2014

United Nations General Assembly Resolution 68/262 was adopted on March 27, 2014 by the sixty -eight session of the United Nations General Assembly in response to the so-called annexation of Crimea and entitled "Territorial integrity of Ukraine . The non-binding resolution, which was supported by 100 United Nation member states, affirmed the General Assembly's commitment to the territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders and underscored the invalidity of the 2014 Crimean referendum.

Source: Eurobarometer (October 2016)

European Union

There is a large amount of ideological overlap between some European political parties and the Russian government. Significantly, these include parties considered to be ‘mainstream’ – it is not just ‘fringe’ parties that share elements of the Kremlin’s world-view.

Hardcore anti-Western parties (30 parties)

As provided in the Lisbon Treaty, the general description for the President of the Council reads as follows:

EC Proposed Legislation