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Moldova is officially a neutral country. Neutrality is enshrined by Article 11 of the 1994 Constitution of Moldova. Adopted following Moldova's defeat in the Transnistria War in 1992, neutrality enjoys widespread support among the Moldovan population. Moldova together with Turkmenistan are the only post-Soviet states that declared neutrality after independence.
Neutrality is enshrined in the 1994 Constitution of Moldova. Article 11 states "the Republic of Moldova proclaims its permanent neutrality" and "the Republic of Moldova does not accept the presence of any foreign military troops on its territory". Furthermore, Article 142 states that neutrality, among other issues, can only be revised through a referendum. [1] Earlier, the 1990 sovereignty declaration of the Moldavian SSR within the Soviet Union called for the demilitarization of Moldova in the context of the need of the withdrawal of the Soviet Armed Forces from the republic, with this call being renewed in Moldova's 1991 Declaration of Independence. Moldova and Turkmenistan are the only among the post-Soviet states that declared neutrality after their independence. [2]
Moldovan historian Gheorghe E. Cojocaru stated in 2022 that the adoption of neutrality was a consequence of the Moldovan defeat in the Transnistria War in 1992. This would have had the objectives of helping overcome the consequences of the war, maintain an internal political balance and remain at an equal distance between the main geopolitical actors of the region. Cojocaru stated that the impact that Moldova's neutrality had had so far could be analyzed from two aspects, these being that neutrality had ensured that Moldova resisted all attempts of getting it involved into military collaboration projects in the region and that the policy had not been respected in the face of continued Russian military presence in Transnistria. [2]
The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 caused reconsiderations in Moldova regarding its neutral status. In an interview for Politico , published on 20 January 2023, President of Moldova Maia Sandu said a "serious discussion" was taking place in the country about Moldova's capacity to defend itself and about whether it should join a larger military alliance, without explicitly mentioning NATO. She also said that any such change would require a democratic process. [3] Shortly after, on 16 February, the first day of his premiership, Prime Minister Dorin Recean defied what he called the narrative of "some politicians" according to which Moldova's neutral status automatically implied its defence and declared that a time when neutrality "will no longer work" could come. [4]
Neutral status enjoys widespread support within Moldovan society. A poll held from 14 to 18 October 2022 showed that 44.1% of Moldovans believed neutrality was the solution for ensuring Moldova's security, well above the second most voted option, accession to the European Union (EU), with 12.2% of the votes. [5] In a poll held from 13 to 28 June 2023, 30.6% voted that the best solution would be neutrality without an increase in investments into the country's defence and security, 18.6% voted neutrality with an increase in such investments and 19.2% voted EU accession. [6]
Furthermore, a potential accession of Moldova into neighbouring military alliances or enhanced collaboration with them is not very favored by most Moldovans. The 13–28 June 2023 poll showed that 28% would vote in a hypothetical referendum in favor of Moldova's accession into NATO while 60.3% would vote against. [6] As for the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a poll held from 12 to 22 February 2023 showed Moldovan collaboration with the alliance was regarded as the method for guaranteeing Moldova's security by 16.3%, the second most voted option, well below the option of neutrality and strengthening of the armed forces with 43.3% of the votes. [7]
In a 2023 article for Deutsche Welle, Moldovan journalist Vitalie Ciobanu noted the apparent contradiction shown in polls by the Moldovans in favor of uniting with Romania and those in favor of joining NATO, as the former was more popular than the latter even though Romania is a NATO member. [8]
After achieving independence from the Soviet Union, the Republic of Moldova established relations with other European countries. A course for European Union integration and neutrality define the country's foreign policy guidelines.
Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, on the northeastern corner of the Balkans. The country spans a total of 33,483 km2 and has a population of approximately 2.5 million as of January 2023. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The unrecognised breakaway state of Transnistria lies across the Dniester river on the country's eastern border with Ukraine. Moldova is a unitary parliamentary representative democratic republic with its capital in Chișinău, the country's largest city and main cultural and commercial centre.
Transnistria or Pridnestrovie, officially known as the Pridnestrovian Moldovan Republic (PMR), is an internationally unrecognized state, considered to be a part of Moldova. Transnistria controls most of the narrow strip of land between the Dniester river and the Moldova–Ukraine border, as well as some land on the other side of the river's bank. Its capital and largest city is Tiraspol. Transnistria is officially designated by the Republic of Moldova as the Administrative-Territorial Units of the Left Bank of the Dniester or as Stînga Nistrului. In March 2022, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted a resolution that defines the territory as under military occupation by Russia.
Vladimir Voronin is a Moldovan politician. He was the third President of Moldova from 2001 until 2009 and has been the leader of the Party of Communists of Moldova (PCRM) since 1994. He was Europe's first democratically elected communist party head of state after the dissolution of the Eastern Bloc.
The ȘOR Party was a populist political party in Moldova. Known from its foundation in 1998 until October 2016 as the Socio-Political Movement "Equality", the party held Eurosceptic and Russophilic stances.
The unification of Moldova and Romania is a popular concept in the two countries that began during the Revolutions of 1989. The Romanian Revolution in 1989 and the independence of Moldova in 1991 further contributed to the development of a movement for the unification of the two Romanian-speaking countries. The question of reunification is recurrent in the public sphere of the two countries, often as a speculation, both as a goal and a danger. Though historically Romanian support for unification was high, a March 2022 survey following the Russian invasion of Ukraine indicated that only 11% of Romania's population supports an immediate union, while over 42% think it is not the right moment.
Relations between the European Union (EU) and Moldova are currently shaped via the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), an EU foreign policy instrument dealing with countries bordering its member states.
Modern Moldova-Romania relations emerged after the Republic of Moldova gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. Pan-Romanianism has been a consistent part of Moldovan politics, and was adopted in the Popular Front of Moldova's platform in 1992. The official language of Moldova is Romanian. The peoples of the two countries share common traditions and folklore, including a common name for the monetary unit – the leu. At present, relations between the two states are exceptionally friendly, especially on account of the pro-Romanian administration of Maia Sandu in Moldova.
Mihai Ghimpu is a Moldovan politician who served as President of the Moldovan Parliament and Acting President of Moldova from 2009 to 2010. He was member of Parliament of Moldova from 1990 to 1998 and from 2009 to 2019. Ghimpu held the position of leader of Liberal Party (PL) from 1998 to 2018.
NATO is a military alliance of thirty-two European and North American countries that constitutes a system of collective defense. The process of joining the alliance is governed by Article 10 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which allows for the invitation of "other European States" only and by subsequent agreements. Countries wishing to join must meet certain requirements and complete a multi-step process involving political dialog and military integration. The accession process is overseen by the North Atlantic Council, NATO's governing body. NATO was formed in 1949 with twelve founding members and has added new members ten times. The first additions were Greece and Turkey in 1952. In May 1955, West Germany joined NATO, which was one of the conditions agreed to as part of the end of the country's occupation by France, the United Kingdom, and the United States, prompting the Soviet Union to form its own collective security alliance later that month. Following the end of the Franco regime, newly democratic Spain chose to join NATO in 1982.
Parliamentary elections were held in the Moldavian SSR in February and March 1990 to elect the 380 members of the Supreme Soviet. They were the first and only free elections to the Supreme Soviet of the MSSR, and although the Communist Party of Moldova was the only registered party allowed to contest the election, opposition candidates were allowed to run as independents. Together with affiliated groups, the Popular Front of Moldova won a landslide victory. Candidates who were openly supporters of the Popular Front won about 27% of seats; together with moderate Communists, mainly from rural districts, they commanded a majority.
Official relations between Moldova and NATO began in 1992 when Moldova joined the North Atlantic Cooperation Council. However, as Moldova's neutrality is enshrined in its constitution, there are no official plans for Moldova to join the organization.
NATO maintains foreign relations with many non-member countries across the globe. NATO runs a number of programs which provide a framework for the partnerships between itself and these non-member nations, typically based on that country's location. These include the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council and the Partnership for Peace.
Maia Sandu is a Moldovan politician who has been the President of Moldova since 24 December 2020. She is the founder and former leader of the Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) and former Prime Minister of Moldova from 8 June 2019 until 14 November 2019, when the government collapsed after a vote of no-confidence. Sandu was Minister of Education from 2012 to 2015 and member of the Parliament of Moldova from 2014 to 2015, and again in 2019. Sandu was elected President of Moldova in a landslide victory during the 2020 Moldovan presidential election. The first female president of Moldova, Sandu is a strong supporter of the accession of Moldova to the European Union, overseeing Moldova's granting of candidate status, and is considered 'pro-Western'. She has criticised and opposed Russia's invasion of Ukraine and supported subsequent steps to reduce Moldova's economic dependence on Russia, frequently expressing sympathy and support for Ukraine in the conflict. Sandu has made anti-corruption, economic reform and liberalisation a central part of her political platform, as well as closer integration with Europe. In February 2023, she accused Russia of seeking to stage a coup of the Moldovan government and has continued to seek to reduce Russia's influence over the country.
The accession of Moldova to the European Union (EU) is on the current agenda for future enlargement of the EU.
The Center for Culture and Military History is an institution of the Moldovan National Army under the auspices of the Ministry of Defense. Founded on 18 August 2011, its mission is to develop fundamental investigation into Moldovan military history. It has cooperated with foreign historical institutions such as the Romanian National Military Archives and the NATO Information and Documentation Centre. In February 2017, the book Homage and Gratitude, which was in memory of those who fell in the Transnistria War, was unveiled at the center. It has also played host to multiple events, including the first meeting of the National Council for War Veterans Affairs in 2020 and the meeting of Moldovan alumni of the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies in 2015. It is currently under the leadership of its director, Colonel Alexandru Chirilenco, who was appointed by President Igor Dodon in December 2019. One of its former directors, Colonel Vitalie Ciobanu, was the founded of the magazine "Cohorta", the first and only military publication of Moldovan military history.
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