Chisinau - Moldova's government on Tuesday set July 29 as the date for fresh parliamentary elections, after a previous poll in April resulted in riots.

President Vladimir Voronin signed an executive order setting the date for the next contest, with political tensions remaining high in the former Soviet republic.

The April 5 election gave the Communist Party a 60-seat majority in the 101-member parliament, prompting accusations of an electoral fix and riots in which one person was killed and more than 300 injured.

Attempts by the Voronin-led Communists to form a new government broke down almost immediately, with three minority opposition parties refusing to support a Communist-nominated presidential candidate to succeed Voronin.

That forced a hung parliament and new elections.

Voronin on Tuesday accused the opposition of putting political conflict with his administration ahead of the good of the nation, and threatening the very future of the former Soviet republic.

"We have all seen how vulnerable our country can be if just for a few hours some politicians unwilling to face defeat in fair elections, try to grab power," he told reporters.

The day of the scheduled repeat elections, a Wednesday, is a break from long-standing Moldovan electoral tradition for national polls to be held on Sunday.

That could help the communists, as much of their support is rural or retired, whilst the backbone of support for Moldova's opposition parties is urban, often professional or student, and centred in Chisinau. Observers say they are less likely to find time to cast ballots on a weekday.

"Moldova can only be independent if she remains democratic, and re-establish political stability," Voronin said, calling on the main opposition parties to participate in and accept the results of the July 29 elections.

Vladimir Filat, leader of the opposition Liberal Democratic Party, said: "The main thing is that there be no fraud like there was on April 5."

Voronin and international vote-monitoring organizations called the April 5 ballot generally free and fair, in some cases criticising Moldova's opposition leaders for inciting rank-and-file supporters to violence.(dpa)