CHISINAU, May 31. /TASS/. Moldovan Foreign Minister Mihai Popsoi has said that he supports the idea of Moldova’s unification with Romania and will vote for it if such a referendum is organized.
"The issue of Moldova becoming part of Romania must not be a taboo. There has always been, and still is, a unionist movement here. Undoubtedly, this discussion is part of the political process in the country. As a Romanian citizen, I cannot vote against unification," he said in an interview with the Voice of Bessarabia radio station.
In an interview with France’s Le Monde, Moldovan President Maia Sandu said that her country’s unification with Romania will help Chisinau to get into the European Union much quicker. She also said that as a Romanian citizen she supports the idea of unification but noted that "such a decision should be supported by the majority of citizens."
Russia’s Ambassador to Bucharest Vladimir Lipayev told TASS that the majority of Moldovans do not support the idea of the unification with Romania, despite the current Moldovan authorities’ efforts to push it through.
A number of political parties in Moldova have been advancing the idea of unification with Romania for decades. They have also been calling for the withdrawal from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). Opinion polls indicated that the idea is supported by nearly 68% of the population in Romania, while only a third of Moldovans approve of such a step.
Following the revolution in Russia, Romania deployed its troops to the Bessarabia province of the former Russian Empire. The Soviet government refused to recognize this annexation, and this territory was returned back to the Soviet Union in 1940. Moldova proclaimed independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union. However, politicians in neighboring Romania consider this territory as part of their country and call for unification.