Russian efforts to influence Moldova’s Oct. 20 elections have reached unprecedented levels, with Moscow allegedly spending up to hundreds of millions of dollars on buying votes, pumping out

Russia has authorised the spending of significant sums of money to influence the upcoming presidential election in Moldova and the referendum on the country’s accession to the European Union, the U.S.

Moldova's citizens vote on Sunday in a presidential election and an EU referendum that come at a pivotal moment in the tussle between Russia and the West for the future of the poor, landlocked southeast European nation of under 3 million people.

The European Union on Monday blacklisted five Moldovan pro-Russia politicians and one non-governmental organization promoting the Kremlin's destabilizing activities in the vulnerable former Soviet nation.

Long torn over closer ties with the European Union or maintaining Soviet-era relations with Moscow, Moldova faces a decisive choice in Sunday's presidential elections held under the shadow of war in neighbouring Ukraine.

Russia is seeking to undermine Moldova's upcoming presidential election and has spent millions of dollars on its efforts to do so, the White House said Tuesday.

The Kremlin is desperate to return Moldova to its sphere of influence, but its meddling is no longer working.

Moldova is emerging as a major strategic battleground in a fierce competition between Russia and the west. A Kremlin-backed disinformation campaign has intensified over the last few months, in the run-up to Moldova’s presidential elections.