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Romania's relations with neighbour Moldova have been strained since 1994. Most of Moldova was part of Romania during the interwar period and linguists generally agree that the Moldovan language is similar to Romanian (and by almost all accounts, the same as Romanian). However, the Moldovans have been ambivalent about whether they consider themselves Romanians or Moldovans. Early signs that Romania and Moldova might unite after both countries achieved emancipation from communist rule quickly faded. Romania remains interested in Moldovan affairs, especially that country's civil conflict with the breakaway republic of Transnistria. However, the two countries have been unable even to reach agreement on a basic bilateral treaty; Romania is insistent (against determined Moldovan resistance) that such a treaty would have to refer to Romania and Moldova's 'special relationship'.
Recognition by Romania
Romania was the first state to recognize the independent Republic of Moldova – only a few hours, in fact, after the declaration of independence was issued by the Moldovan parliament. Within a few days accords were signed on the establishment of embassies and consulates. Within a few weeks, visa and passport-free border regimes were established, allowing Romanian and Moldovan citizens to travel from one country to the other with identity cards only. Already in 1991, Romania started to grant textbooks to Moldovan schools and libraries and began to offer scholarships to Moldovan students for studying at Romanian high schools and universities. Romania was the first state which recognized the Republic of Moldova, after the proclamation of the state independence on August 27, 1991. From the declaration of the Romanian Government made on that occasion it clearly resulted that, in the opinion of the authorities in Bucharest, Moldova's independence was considered as a form of emancipation from Moscow's tutelage and a step towards the reunification with Romania:
"The proclamation of an independent Romanian state in the territories annexed by force, following the secret understanding set through the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, represents a decisive step towards the elimination, in a peaceful way, of its unfortunate consequences directed against the rights and the interests of the Romanian people".
On April 14, 1994, the Chamber of Deputies of Romania's Parliament adopted a Declaration of protest against the decision of the Parliament in Chisinau to vote in favour of Moldova's adhering to CIS. Referring to the legitimate act of the Moldovan Parliament through which the latter "was conducting as it wished its relations with other states", the protest of the Chamber of Deputies in Romania brings serious accusations to the legislative body of the other equal, sovereign and independent state:
"The vote of the Parliament in Chisinau regrettably reconfirms the criminal Pact and irresponsibly cancels the right of the Romanian nation to live within the integrity of its historical and spiritual space... Through the geographical position, through culture, history and traditions, the natural place of our brothers from across the Prut is, undoubtedly, together with us, in the great family of the European nations and by no means in an Euro-Asian structure".
The legislative body in Bucharest accuses the fundamental state institution of a country, which it has recognized as independent, of irresponsibility, of confirming criminal acts and it decides upon the place the Moldovan state should take in the configuration of international relations. That makes the way Romania understands to observe the UN and CSCE principles, in its relations with Moldova, a controversial one. No wonder that the relations between Romania and Moldova have continued to deteriorate after the Declaration of Independence of the Moldovan state.
Unification of Romania with Moldova
When the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact was signed, the territories between the Prut and the Nistru belonged to Romania. Moreover, the mentioning of the "rights and interests of the Romanian people" clearly expresses the objective of the reunification. Since the recognition of the independence of the Republic of Moldova many references were made in Romania to the necessity of eliminating the consequences of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact. As a matter of fact, in June 1991, Romania's Parliament adopted a declaration through which the above mentioned Pact was declared null and void. Moreover, in the second half of 1991, high Romanian dignitaries, as for instance the minister of foreign affairs at that time Adrian Nastase, looked upon reunification in very optimistic terms, identifying also a model in this respect: the German model. Obviously, the international juridical framework for the achievement of this desideratum was taken into account, namely the Helsinki Final Act of the Conference for Security and Cooperation in Europe that stipulates in the first of the ten principles' text concerning the regulation of international relations:
"They (the states-a.n.) consider that their frontiers can be changed, in accordance with international law, by peaceful means and by agreement (a.e.)". The ten principles of the Final Act were reconfirmed by the Charter of Paris for A New Europe in November 1990, and were to be also reiterated in the Document of the CSCE Summit in Helsinki, The Challenges of Change, in 1992.
See also
- Political movements for unification of Romania with Moldova
- Romanian president's proposal for union of Moldova with Romania
- Plans for unification of Romania with Moldova
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