Ukrainian authorities said oil began leaking after a Russian strike on the Dniester hydroelectric plant on 7 March, with the first slicks appearing three days later on the Dniester river - a vital source for most of Moldova and the Odesa region in southwestern Ukraine. Moldovan Environment Minister Gheorghe Hajder said supplies would only be restored once oil levels had been brought down to the recommended limit of 0. Maia Sandu, Moldova's pro-European president, has been a strong supporter of Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, praising Kyiv for protecting her own country from attack. She won a second term as president of Moldova in 2024 despite what the EU called "unprecedented interference [in the election] by Russia". 4 million, but Russia still has a military base in the Russian-speaking, breakaway region of Transnistria, which lies along much of Moldova's eastern border with Ukraine. Meanwhile, Moldovan police have said an "active" Russian drone, armed with an "explosive device", has landed 500m (1640ft) inside the Ukraine-Moldova border in the village of Tudora.