‘Legal chaos’ as Romanian court rules against annulment of presidential vote
Piling confusion on controversy, a Romanian district appeals court has ruled barely a week before the rerun of the country’s presidential election that the constitutional court’s decision cancelling the original vote should itself be annulled.
Romania’s central electoral bureau said on Thursday night that the ruling by the Ploiești city appeals court would not affect the two-round ballot, due to be held on 4 and 18 May, and legal experts have said constitutional court decisions are final.
But the decision, which is likely to be overturned within days by the high court, has added what media described as “unprecedented legal chaos” to an already contentious vote that has been the subject of fierce debate at home and abroad.
The original first round last November was won by Călin Georgescu, a far-right, anti-EU, Moscow-friendly independent who declared zero campaign spending but surged from less than 5% days before the vote to finish first on 23%.
The constitutional court annulled the vote after declassified intelligence documents revealed an alleged Russian influence operation, including multiple cyber-attacks on the electoral IT system and “massive” social media meddling in Georgescu’s favour.
In February, Georgescu, who denies wrongdoing, was placed under investigation on counts including misreporting campaign finances, misuse of digital technology and promoting fascist groups, and in March he was barred from standing in the rerun.
The election is being closely watched abroad: the EU would prefer not to have another nationalist disruptor in the region alongside Hungary and Slovakia, and Ukraine’s allies would prefer Romania, home to a big Nato base, to remain a strategic ally.
Final hours for Catholic faithful to pay respects to Pope Francis
The Vatican said 150,000 people have already paid their respects to Pope Francis, whose body is lying in state in St Peter’s Basilica, AFP reported.
Pilgrims from around the world have only a few hours left to visit the basilica before it closes to visitors ahead of tomorrow’s funeral.
On Friday evening, at the end of his lying in state in St. Peter’s Basilica, Francis’ coffin will be sealed in a private ceremony led by eight Catholic cardinals, Reuters said.
Somewhere between 200,000 and 500,000 people are expected to attend the funeral, with around 50 heads of states and governments, including US president Donald Trump, UK prime minister Keir Starmer, French president Emmanuel Macron, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Argentinian president Javier Milei.
Their presence involves a massive logistics and security operation to ensure smooth arrivals and departures and security throughout the weekend, with many leaders arriving on Friday afternoon and evening.
After the mass, Francis will then be buried according to his wishes in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore outside the Vatican.
The funeral cortege will travel to the basilica from St. Peter’s at walking pace. Crowds are expected to gather along the route, which is about 5.5 km (3.4 miles) long and will pass by many of Rome’s famed monuments, including the Colosseum, Reuters noted.
Why did Francis choose this particular church, to which he had a special devotion? Our Rome correspondent Angela Giuffrida has the answer.
Updated
As we await further updates from Moscow, let me quickly bring you up to date with other news from around Europe.
Claim to end war in Ukraine on day one was was 'figurative,' Trump says
We earlier brought you a key quote Crimea from Trump’s big interview with the Time magazine with the US president claiming that “Crimea will stay with Russia” (here), but there are more lines there that are, erm, interesting.
Here is another passage from the interview, as per the official transcript:
You said you would end the war in Ukraine on Day One.
Well, I said that figuratively, and I said that as an exaggeration, because to make a point, and you know, it gets, of course, by the fake news [unintelligible]. Obviously, people know that when I said that, it was said in jest, but it was also said that it will be ended.
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Witkoff meets Putin at the Kremlin - in pictures
Video published by the Kremlin has shown Steve Witkoff and Vladimir Putin shaking hands and exchanging pleasantries before sitting down on opposite sides of one of the Kremlin’s large white oval tables.
Putin was accompanied by his foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov and investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev. Witkoff appeared to have one other US official with him.
Russia confirms that Vladimir Putin and Steve Witkoff are meeting at the Kremlin
Vladimir Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has confirmed that the Russian president is “receiving president Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff in the Kremlin”, Reuters reports, citing Interfax.
Tass has reported on its Telegram channel “Ushakov and Dmitriev take part in Putin’s meeting with Witkoff”.
Presumably – although the Guardian has not confirmed this – that suggests Yuri Ushakov, former Russian ambassador to the US, and Putin’s investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev are in attendence. Dmitriev met Witkoff earlier this month.
Here is another image from the scene in Balashikha where Lt Gen Yaroslav Moskalik was killed in a car explosion.
In Moscow, Interfax is reporting that Vladimir Putin is meeting with US envoy Steve Witkoff.
Reuters reports foreign ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi has reaffirmed Kyiv’s negotiating position, saying that at talks in London this week the Ukrainian delegation insisted that Ukraine will not accept:
being forced to recognise any part of Ukrainian territory as Russian
allowing any country to have a veto on what alliances Ukraine can make
imposing any restrictions upon Ukraine’s armed forces
Documents published earlier today [See 11.35 CEST] suggest that the US is proposing that Ukraine be allowed to pursue EU membership if it desires, but will be permanently barred from joining Nato. Preventing Ukraine’s Nato membership has been one of Vladimir Putin’s war goals.
This is an image from @balashikha_life, shown on Russian media, which purports to show the car bomb in Balashikha, a city just to the east of Moscow, which killed senior military official Lt Gen Yaroslav Moskalik.
The Guardian has not independently verified the image.
Pjotr Sauer is a Russian affairs reporter for the Guardian
A senior Russian military official was killed in a car explosion near Moscow on Friday, just hours before a Kremlin meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff.
The Russian authorities named the officer as Lt Gen Yaroslav Moskalik, the deputy head of the main operations directorate of the general staff of the Russian armed forces.
The blast appeared to be similar in nature to previous attacks on Russians that were later claimed by Ukraine and could cast a shadow over Friday’s talks between Moscow and Washington.
Baza, a Telegram channel with sources in Russia’s law enforcement agencies, said a bomb in a parked car in the town of Balashikha in the Moscow region had been detonated remotely when the officer, who lived locally, walked past.
A video circulating on Russian social media captured the moment the car exploded, while additional images showed the vehicle completely burned out.
Read Pjotr Sauer’s full report here: Russian general killed in car blast hours before US envoy’s Kremlin meeting
Tass reports that Maria Zakharova, Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson, has described the killing of Lt Gen Yaroslav Moskalik as a “terrorist attack”.
Senior Russian military officer killed by car bomb in city near Moscow, officials say
Associated Press has further details of the confirmed killing of a senior Russian military official by a car bomb in the city of Balashikha, which lies just to the east of the outskirts of Russia’s capital.
It reports Russia’s top criminal investigation agency confirmed the killing of Lt Gen Yaroslav Moskalik. The deputy head of the main operational department in the general staff of the Russian armed forces, he was killed by an explosive device placed in his car.
The committee’s spokesperson, Svetlana Petrenko, said the explosive device was rigged with shrapnel. She said that investigators were at the scene.
The committee did not mention possible suspects, but Ukraine was blamed for the death of Lt Gen Igor Kirillov on 17 December last year, when a bomb hidden on an electric scooter parked outside his apartment exploded as he left for his office.
Time Magazine has this morning published an interview with US president Donald Trump in which he has reiterated what appears to now be the US position on the future of Crimea, which Russia invaded and annexed in 2014. “Crimea will stay with Russia”, he told the magazine.
A senior Russian military officer has reportedly been killed in a car explosion in a city near Moscow, Reuters reports, citing local media sources. The explosion took place in Balashikha, which is in the Moscow region, to the east of Russia’s capital.
Tass initially reported “the investigative committee opened a case after a car exploded in Balashikha near Moscow; investigators and forensic experts went to the scene” later adding “The cause of the car explosion in Balashikha was an explosive device, emergency services told Tass.”
Tass also reported, citing emergency services, that “the explosive device … was filled with shrapnel.”
Reuters, which has not verified the information, reports that local media named the officer killed as Yaroslav Moskalik, deputy head of the main operations directorate of the general staff of the Russian armed forces.
There was no immediate official confirmation from the authorities of what happened or details about the identity of the reported victim.
More details soon …
Reuters has also published details of another document, which it says are the counterproposals for a deal put forward by Ukrainian and European officials.
These are as follows:
Commit to a full and unconditional ceasefire in the sky, on land and at sea
Both sides immediately enter into negotiations on technical implementation with the participation of the US and European countries. This is in parallel to preparation of the agenda and modalities for a full peace deal
Ceasefire monitoring, led by the US and supported by third countries.
Russia must unconditionally return all deported and illegally displaced Ukrainian children
Exchange of all prisoners of war (the principle of “all for all”)
Russia must release all civilian prisoners
Ukraine receives robust security guarantees including from the US (Article 5-like agreement), while there is no consensus among Allies on Nato membership
No restrictions on the Ukrainian Defense Forces
The guarantor states will be an ad hoc group of European countries and willing non-European countries. No restrictions on the presence, weapons and operations of friendly foreign forces on the territory of Ukraine
Ukraine pursues accession to the EU
Territorial issues will be discussed and resolved after a full and unconditional ceasefire
Territorial negotiations start from the basis of the line of control
Ukraine regains control of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant with US involvement, and also the Kakhovka Dam
Ukraine enjoys unhindered passages on the Dnipro River and control of the Kinburn Spit
US and Ukraine implement economic cooperation/minerals agreement
Ukraine will be fully reconstructed and compensated financially, including through Russian sovereign assets that will remain frozen until Russia compensates damage to Ukraine
US sanctions imposed on Russia since 2014 may be subject to gradual easing after a sustainable peace is achieved and subject to resumption in the event of a breach of the peace agreement
The Guardian has not independently verified the document.
Reuters has published what it says are details of the Russia-Ukraine Deal Framework being proposed by the US.
The news agency says the proposal is described as “the final offer from the United States to both sides”. It goes on to detail the following terms
Permanent ceasefire
Both sides immediately engage in technical implementation negotiations
Ukraine receives robust security guarantee
Guarantor states will be an ad hoc grouping of European states plus willing non-European states
Ukraine will not seek to join Nato
Ukraine may pursue EU membership
US provides de jure recognition of Russian control of Crimea
US provides de facto recognition of Russian control of Luhansk
US provides de facto recognition of Russian-controlled parts of Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, and Kherson
Ukraine regains territory in Kharkiv oblast
Ukraine regains control of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant through US control and administration of the plant, with electricity distributed to both sides, and also the Kakhovka Dam
Ukraine enjoys unhindered passage on Dnipro River and control of the Kinburn Spit
United States and Ukraine will implement economic cooperation/minerals agreement
Ukraine to be fully reconstructed and compensated financially
Sanctions on Russia resulting from this conflict since 2014 will be removed
US-Russian economic cooperation on energy and other industrial sectors
The Guardian has not independently verified the document.
Updated
Three dead, 10 injured in Russian drone attack on Ukraine
Witkoff’s visit – second this month and fourth since January – comes after another night of Russian attacks on Ukraine.
Ukrainian officials reported that a Russian drone has struck an apartment building in a southeastern Ukraine city, killing three people and injuring 10 others, AP reported.
Among the civilians killed in the night-time drone strike in Pavlohrad, in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region, were a child and a 76-year-old woman, the head of the regional administration, Serhii Lysak, wrote on Telegram.
Russian forces fired 103 Shahed and decoy drones at five Ukrainian regions overnight, Ukraine’s air force reported.
Witkoff arrives in Moscow
And the Interfax news agency has now reported that Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow, where he is expected to meet Vladimir Putin.
Reuters noted that Witkoff has emerged as Washington’s key interlocutor with Putin as Trump pushes for a deal to end the war in Ukraine, and has already held three long meetings with the Kremlin leader.
Morning opening: Witkoff in Moscow
US peace envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to travel to Moscow today for further talks with Russia, including president Vladimir Putin, on Donald Trump’s peace plan for Ukraine.
Hoping to get results before Trump’s 100 days in the office next week, Witkoff will have to find a way to convey the sense of the president’s frustration with the Russian attack on Kyiv on Thursday, while hoping to make good progress as Washington tries to put pressure on Kyiv to agree to its proposal.
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov told CBS News that Russia was “ready to reach a deal, but there are still some specific points … which need to be fine-tuned, and we are busy with this,” as he praised Trump for being “probably the only leader on Earth who recognised the need to address the root causes of this situation.”
But there are still big sticking points, with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy repeatedly refusing to give up on any of the Russian occupied territory including the strategically located Crimea.
On Thursday, he explained that “we do everything that our partners have proposed; only what contradicts our legislation and the constitution we cannot do.”
And the Ukrainian president has powerful allies in European leaders like Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron and in Nato secretary general Mark Rutte, who said on Thursday that it was Moscow, not Kyiv, that needed to move forward in negotiations.
Former UK prime minister Boris Johnson also criticised the proposed deal, saying Ukraine “gets nothing” under the terms offered by Trump – although the US president insisted last night that Russia “stopping the war, stopping taking the whole country” is a “pretty big concession.”
It’s Friday, 25 April 2025, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
