Unification of Moldova and Romania

During the Russian Revolution of 1917, a newly formed regional parliament (Sfatul Țării) declared Bessarabia's autonomy within Russia.

[4][5][6] In 1940, during World War II, Romania agreed to an ultimatum and ceded Moldova to the Soviet Union, which organized it into the Moldavian SSR.

In the middle of 1941, Romania joined the Axis Powers in the invasion of the Soviet Union, recovering Bessarabia and northern Bukovina, as well as occupying the territory to the east of the Dniester it dubbed "Transnistria".

[12] In June 1991, Snegur talked about Moldova moving toward the reunification with Romania, adding that the Soviet Union was not making great efforts to stop it.

At the same time, Transnistria, the eastern part of Moldova, inhabited by Moldovians, Russians, Ukrainians approximately in the same proportions, used the putative danger of unification with Romania as a pretext for its own aspirations for staying with Russia.

[15] On 26 June 1991, at the request of Larry Pressler, the U.S. Senate adopted a resolution which supported the unification of Moldova and Northern Bukovina with Romania.

[19] A "Concept on National Policy" was adopted in 2003 by the Communist dominated Parliament, stating that Moldovans and Romanians are different peoples, and that the latter are an ethnic minority in Moldova.

[24] In 2004 and later, the Romanian newspaper Ziua published a series of articles and interviews with Stanislav Belkovsky, an influential Russian political commentator, who proposed a plan of a unification of Romania and Moldova excluding Transnistria.

[citation needed] In July of the same year, Băsescu claimed to have made a proposal to the Moldovan president Vladimir Voronin that "Moldova join the EU together with Romania in 2007" and that the alleged offer was rejected.

"[29] In a November 2009 interview, political commentator Stanislav Belkovsky declared that the April 2009 election marked the beginning of the process of Moldova's return to Romania.

[36] A similar statement was also made by Russian political analyst Vladimir Bruter and by the pro-Russian[37] Moldovan commentator Zurab Todua, both claiming in a Russian TV Show that the split of the Romanian people is a "tragedy", and, if the people want the unification of the 2 countries, it will happen and the global powers can't oppose it.

[38] However, acting President Mihai Ghimpu denied in an interview with the Russian language newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda v Moldove that such a move will be taken, stating that a union is not included in the program of the governing coalition.

[42] On 27 November 2013, a day before participation in the Eastern Partnership Summit in Vilnius, Romanian President Traian Băsescu was invited to an interview at the national TV station, TVR.

[50][51] In April 2016, former minister of defence and army general Victor Gaiciuc (who is considered to be close to former president Igor Dodon) called the unionist idea a danger for Moldova's sovereignty and that he is a statalist.

Supporters of the idea (such as the Romanian historian Marius Oprea)[67] argue that the unification would strengthen NATO's eastern flank and defend Moldova in the event of an escalation of the Transnistrian conflict.

[72] In January 2023, Russian deputies Leonid Kalashnikov and Svetlana Zhurova warned that Moldova's intentions to unite with Romania, and thus joining NATO, may lead to its destruction.

A 2013 study by the Soros Foundation Romania found that from the passing of the citizenship law in 1991 until the end of 2012, the number of successful applications from Moldova was 323,049.

Year 2012 was chosen as a reference to the bicentennial commemoration of the 1812 division of historical Moldavia, when the Russian Empire annexed what would later be called Bessarabia.

[102][103][104][105] In February 2012, the Union Council was created to "gather all unionists" in order to "promote the idea of Romanian national unity".

[106][107][108] Created on May 16, 2015, as a coalition of 30 NGO Support unification of Republic of Moldova with Romania Head Persons: Ion Leascenco (actual leader), Anatol Ursu, Constantin Codreanu (former leader), Oleg Chicu, Lucia Vieru, Vitalie Prisacaru, Artemis Balan, Claudia Iovita On March 27, 2016, the unionists formed the "Sfatul Țării 2", self-proclaimed successor of Sfatul Țării.

Various intellectuals and artists from both countries supported the marches,[119] while Moldovan Speaker Marian Lupu and Prime Minister Vlad Filat opposed them.

[126][127] Around a thousand young people from among the participants headed to Bucharest in the "March of Stephen the Great" (Romanian: Marșul lui Ștefan cel Mare) calling for the unification of Moldova with Romania.

In a letter to European Parliament President Martin Schulz, released on 7 July, Voronin accused Bucharest of fomenting "the destruction and annexation of Moldova".

[132] On 22 September 2015, the Governments of Romania and the Republic of Moldova held a bilateral reunion in Neptun, Constanța county, where over 300 unionists demonstrated.

[133] In 2018, centennial celebration of the Great Union, a demonstration called the Centenary March was organized by several Romanian and Moldovan activists for unification.

[137][138] The International Republican Institute in partnership with Gallup, Inc. regularly conducts polls in the Republic of Moldova on several social and political issues.

[142][143] The pro-Unionist NGO "Romanian Centre of Strategic Studies" published reports claiming significantly higher support for the idea: The Public Opinion Barometer (BOP), released twice a year in Moldova at the initiative of IPP (Institute of Public Policy), included beginning with its November 2015 edition a question about the reunification The Socio-Political Barometer, released several times a year by IMAS Moldova, also included the question about the reunification The polls conducted by FOP presented the following results The company iData has regularly included a question about unification in its polls.

[163] The number of people in favor of the unification increased to 41.2% as shown by a poll from iData made between 21 and 28 July 2021 with 1,065 participants, including some from Transnistria.

[178] This increased to 39.7% in a 29 September–11 October poll, believed to be because of changes in Romanian legislation that allowed the sale of electricity to Moldova at preferential prices to combat the country's energy crisis at the time.

[193] When it comes to Transnistria, a non-recognised self-proclaimed state with three official languages (Moldovan, Russian, and Ukrainian), it is not clear what would happen upon unification.