Romania's Supreme Court has sentenced former Romanian Prime Minister Adrian Nastase to two years in prison for corruption, in what is seen as a landmark conviction in the EU member country, which has prosecuted few senior officials.
Nastase denies any wrongdoing. He will remain free pending an appeal.
Nastase, who headed a leftist government between 2000 and 2004, was charged with siphoning off funds totaling 1.7 million euros ($2.2 million) for his 2004 election campaign.
The sentencing on January 30 comes weeks ahead of a report on the Romanian judiciary to be released by the European Commission.
The EU has repeatedly raised concerns about a failure to tackle corruption in Romania, and neighboring Bulgaria, the EU's newest members which have been blocked from joining the passport-free Schengen zone over the issue.
Compiled from agency reports