The politics of Moldova takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, wherein the prime minister heads the government, and of a multi-party system. The government exercises executive power. Legislative power is vested in the Parliament. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The position of the breakaway region of Transnistria (a self-proclaimed autonomous region, on the left side of the river Nistru), relations with Romania and with Russia, and integration into the EU dominate political discussions.