President Igor Dodon today refused to sign into law a deal that would enable the construction of a new U.S. Embassy within a Chisinau city block that once held the defunct National Stadium, IPN reports.

“Like most Moldovans, I believe this plot of land should instead be converted into a park or accommodate a new cultural establishment to the benefit of all the citizens of our country”, the president wrote on his official FB account.

President Dodon also wrote to Speaker Andrian Candu warning him that “through the legalization of this process whereby the National Stadium is destroyed and sold, Parliament has defied public opinion, causing indignation within society. The President’s Office has received hundreds of petitions from members of the public who request that the bill be rejected as one that could lead to conflict”. Considering this, the president has suggested that the issue should be postponed until after the parliamentary elections, when “more convenient solutions” could be identified.

A similar message was communicated earlier during a meeting with U.S. Ambassador James D. Pettit.

On July 20, Parliament voted to formally acknowledge the demise of the National Stadium and offer the underlying land, occupying an entire block in central Chisinau, for sale in an exclusive deal enabling the construction of a new U.S. Embassy there. The deal’s value is yet to be established. The bill was adopted as the Socialist group staged a walkout. Later the Government vowed to invest the money into the national sports infrastructure.