The Moldovian Gambit

Is Moldova Serious about its Unification with Romania?

Just recently this month, the neoliberal President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu declared that she would agree with the union of Moldovian Republic with Romania, in case of a referendum, which equals with the de facto end of the state that she was elected to represent. Speaking during an interview with British journalists, for the podcast ‘The Rest is Politics’1, she justified her decision with an increasing hypothetical threat from Russia. To put things in context, Moldovian Republic was the eastern part (almost half) of the former historic Principality of Moldova, that united with the other Romanian territories in 1918, just after World War I, to form the Romanian State, on Woodrow Wilson principle of national self-determination. Before this union, as part of the Principality of Moldova, it had a troublesome history. In 1812, she had been ceded to the Russian Empire, by the Ottoman Empire, to which Moldova was a vassal state, and recalled Bessarabia. Importand to mention, that in this original historic form, the territory taken by Russia, that would later be the base of the present Moldovian Republic, also included parts that are now in Ukraine. In 1856, the southern part of Moldova would be restored to the Principality, and taken back again in 1878. In 1917, the Russian Revolution restored the right of self-determination to all territories of the former empire, and the Moldovians declared independence as the Moldavian Democratic Republic. By then, the small republic was a multi ethnic state with many Russians, Ukrainians, Jews and others. Its intellectual elite was also following the progressive 1917 Russian revolution and introduced measures like universal vote, included for women, with women elected in Parliament, lands given to peasants, and also voted Moldova as a federal subject within the Russian Democratic Federative Republic2. Following the Bolsheviks Revolution later in October, Moldova became the fighting ground between the Bolsheviks and the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War3, ended with the victory of the Romanian Army and the union of the Republic of Moldova with the Kingdom of Romania, in April 1918. This definitory history timeline is at the core of the Moldovian state, with no simple solution to reduce the present geopolitical stakes to one side or another. It is why, Moldova has its neutrality declared even in her Constitution. Its rich multicultural past also gives an unique blend of different ethnicities living together in harmony, contrary to some politicians that are trying to use the ethnic factor as a political weapon, just as Maia Sandu now, and others in the past. Ironicaly, the Moldovian President, Maia Sandu made use as argument for this union, not cultural or historic claims, but cold geopolitical reasons, stated as the ‘Russian threat’. When last elections, Sept 2025, took place, with many accusation of fraud, like – political parties suspended in the day before elections4, lack of voting ballots in the regions with more support for opposition, or litterally blocking the access to vote for people from certain pro-russian regions – the victory for the party of 1

2 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moldavian_Democratic_Republic 3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanian_military_intervention_in_Bessarabia 4 https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/9/26/moldova-bans-pro-russian-parties-ahead-of-sundays-election Maia Sandu came more so as a victory for the EU, who appeared more joyfull and relieved than even the Moldovians, for not having a neutral or pro-russian government next to Ukraine. Just as in her shifting past, Moldova is a geopolitical piece in the strategic confrontation between the West and Russia. With little to none economic value, this small country could hardly have ever dreamed of the interest of UE for her, if not for the conflict in Ukraine. But this sudden invitation to join EU, is dividing the people, just as been the case of Ukraine. A referendum for the membership of Moldova to EU, in 2025, showed the people that emigrated abroad voting for EU, while most of the people actually living in Moldova voting against it. With a broken economy before even joining EU, Moldova is now maybe the poorest country in Europe and for sure the poorest future member of EU. All the liberal parties that been in power in Moldova, also have been pro-european and sometimes even for the union with Romania, in contrast with the leftist parties that were more favorable to the markets in the East, that been the prime source of income also in the time of membership in USSR. A friendly relation with Russia also brought lower prices for the Russian gas and acces to the Russian market, mostly for agricultural products, both measures being favorable to the local industry but also to the ordinary citizens, now hardly affected by the high prices for energy. The dihotomy between the two is clear in the eyes of the people – the West brought economic austerity and high prices for the ordinary people, while the East brings a better life for the working people in Moldova. But there are also many who colected the profits fom the liberalisation of local economy, from the money received from abroad, especially from US, NGOs, politicians or businesses connected to the public money that favor the option for EU and of course… more aid and funds in money for them. Together with a lumpenproletariat, mostly emigrants working abroad in menial or illegal jobs like prostitution, these are the supporters of Maia Sandu and the European Neoliberal dream. There is also a cultural divide between Romania and Moldovian Republic. As part of the Soviet Union, Moldova was also part to the socialist accomplishments – the space program, the technological advance, the free movement in a country spreading on two continents, and all the prosperity coming with it. It is the socialist dream, still alive for many and remembered with pride. All these while Romania was a small country in comparison by that time, not a superpower, and looking with envy at USSR, and sometimes even with fear. As a vanity compensation, after the fall of USSR, many Romanian politicians, especially the liberals and pro-european looked with contemp at Moldavians just the same as for the former communists in their own country. Such example is no other than the former Romanian ambasador to Moldova, Daniel Ionita, who called them ‘primitives’ - “If I could open vaccination centers in the embassy, I surely won’t vaccinate them against COVID, but against their primitive moldovenism and against their sentiments they have, at one moment, against Romania”6 In political terms, the union would bring the dissolution of all the advantages that Maia Sandu and her ‘court’ had till now, as intermediary of European funds, national budgets and other privileges, stripped away by the greater ‘fish’ in Bucharest, the Romanian capital, a cesspit of corruption, that 5 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_Moldovan_European_Union_membership_constitutional_referendum 6 https://hotnews.ro/ambasadorul-romniei-la-chisinau-daca-as-deschide-centre-de-vaccinare-n-ambasade-i-as vaccina-pe-unii-cetateni-ai-r-moldova-contra-moldovenismului-primitiv-199897 occasionaly blows up in the press7. Romanian democracy that canceled presidential elections in December 2024, with yet no proof to present to this day, and a higly contested justice system, is hardly a political class to be trusted as to give her, your independence, institutions, budgets, and ultimately the destiny of your own people. But beyond all these, the constant perpetual destiny for Moldova, it’s her chess pawn role, caught between confronting empires, with little that can do. As the Moldovian writer, Vitalie Spranceana, was describing the situation – “It’s like a wagon, we just point her to the East, than turn it around to the West, but it always stays in place, and never moving anywhere.” Florin Emilian Platon 7 https://recorder.ro/documentar-recorder-justitie-capturata/

Florin Platon este membru al World BEYOND War România. Este totodată fondator al Diem25 România, analist politic, observator electoral și consultant politic.