Moldovan or Moldavian is one of the two local names for the Romanian language in Moldova. Moldovan was declared the official language of Moldova in Article 13 of the constitution adopted in 1994, while the 1991 Declaration of Independence of Moldova used the name Romanian. In 2003, the Moldovan parliament adopted a law defining Moldovan and Romanian as glottonyms for the same language. In 2013, the Constitutional Court of Moldova interpreted that Article 13 of the constitution is superseded by the Declaration of Independence, thus giving official status to the name Romanian. The breakaway region of Transnistria continues to recognize "Moldavian" as one of its official languages, alongside Russian and Ukrainian. Ukraine also continued until recently to make a distinction between Moldovan and Romanian, with one village declaring its language to be Romanian and another declaring it to be Moldovan, though Ukrainian officials have announced an intention to remove the legal status of Moldovan. On 16 November, the Ministry of Education and Science of the Ukrainian government stated that it has initiated steps to abolish the Moldovan language and to replace it with Romanian. On 13 January 2024, Ukrainian newspaper Dumska reported that the Ukrainian Ministry of Education and Science had announced all 16 schools in Odesa Oblast teaching "Moldovan" had dropped the term in favor of Romanian. On 16 March 2023, the Moldovan Parliament approved a law on referring to the national language as Romanian in all legislative texts and the constitution. On 22 March, the president of Moldova, Maia Sandu, promulgated the law.
Transnistria, officially known as the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic and locally as Pridnestrovie, is a breakaway state internationally recognized as part of Moldova. It 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.
Igor Nikolaevich Smirnov is a Russian-born Transnistrian politician who served as the first president (1991–2011) of the internationally unrecognized Pridnestrovian Moldovan Republic.
The Transnistria War was an armed conflict that broke out on 2 November 1990 in Dubăsari between pro-Transnistria forces, including the Transnistrian Republican Guard, militia and neo-Cossack units, which were supported by elements of the Russian 14th Army, and pro-Moldovan forces, including Moldovan troops and police.
Moldovenism is a term used to describe the political support and promotion of a Moldovan identity and culture, including a Moldovan language, independent from those of any other ethnic group, the Romanians in particular. It is primarily used as a pejorative by the opponents of such ideas as part of the wider controversy over ethnic and linguistic identity in Moldova.
Yevgeny Vasilyevich Shevchuk is a Transnistrian former politician who served as the second President of Transnistria, from 2011 to 2016.
The Transnistria conflict is an ongoing frozen conflict between Moldova and the unrecognized state of Transnistria. Its most active phase was the Transnistria War. There have been several attempts to resolve the conflict, although none have been successful. The conflict may be considered as having started on 2 September 1990, when Transnistria made a formal sovereignty declaration from Moldova.
The Communist Party of Estonia (CPSU) (Estonian: Eestimaa Kommunistlik Partei; Russian: Коммунистическая партия Эстонии, romanized: Kommunisticheskaya partiya Estonii) was a political party in Estonia. The party was initially known as Communist Party of Estonia (on CPSU platform) (EKP (NLKP platvormil)), and was formed in 1990 through a split in the original Communist Party of Estonia (EKP). The split occurred at the 20th congress of EKP in March 1990, as a reaction against the decision of the congress to separate EKP from the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and rebrand itself into the Estonian Democratic Labour Party (EDTP). Immediately after the independence decision of EKP, the pro-Soviet delegates left the congress venue. The convened their own rival 20th congress on March 26, 1990. EKP (NLKP platvormil) elected its own Central Committee, headed by its First Secretary Alexander Gusev, and would function as a separate party from EKP.
Presidential elections were held in Transnistria on 10 December 2006. Incumbent President Igor Smirnov won despite opposition having stiffened during the final weeks of the campaign. Three candidates registered to run besides the incumbent Smirnov: Bender MP for the Renewal party Peter Tomaily, Transnistrian Communist Party candidate Nadezhda Bondarenko and journalist Andrey Safonov.
Mircea Druc is a Moldovan and Romanian politician who served as Prime Minister of Moldova between 26 May 1990 and 22 May 1991.
A referendum was held in Transnistria on 1 December 1991, in which Transnistria voted to continue its de facto independence and seek international recognition as a separate, sovereign country and member of the international community.
A double referendum was held in Transnistria on 24 December 1995. Voters were asked whether they approved of a new constitution and membership of the Commonwealth of Independent States. The new constitution provided for a parliamentary republic, a bicameral parliament and obligatory referendums for amending sections I, II and IV of the constitution. Both proposals were approved by over 80% of voters. According to an article by the ethnic Russian researcher from Moldova Alla Skvortsova from 2002, "polls and elections in the PMR may to some extent have been rigged".
Presidential elections were held in the breakaway republic of Transnistria on 9 December 2001. The result was a victory for incumbent President Igor Smirnov, who received 82% of the vote. The other candidates were Tom Zenovich, mayor of Bender, and Alexander Radchenko of the Power to the People party, which advocated reunion with Moldova. The Moldova Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2003, released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor of the U.S. Department of State on February 25, 2004, stated "Citizens' right to change their government was severely restricted in Transnistria. In the period prior to the 2001 "presidential" elections, authorities shut down a political party and a youth group, closed a leftist party newspaper, and seized a press run. The authorities refused to register one potential presidential candidate and dismissed another from his job as mayor of Bender prior to the election. Authorities reportedly threatened workers with job loss and students with expulsion from their universities if they did not vote for the incumbent, Igor Smirnov. Local observers reported that the actual voting was unfair, with considerable ballot box stuffing. Officials in the northern region of Kamenka reported that 103.6 percent of their voters cast ballots for Smirnov." According to an article by the ethnic Russian researcher from Moldova Alla Skvortsova from 2002, "polls and elections in the PMR may to some extent have been rigged".
This timeline of events is a chronological list of incidents and other notable occurrences related to the War of Transnistria, including events leading up to the war.
Parliamentary elections were held in the breakaway republic of Transnistria on 10 December 2000. 42 Out of 43 seats were up for election, most of which were won by independent candidates. Women made up 4 of the 42 elected representatives. Grigore Mărăcuţă was elected for a third term as speaker, having the support of 39 out of 41 representatives present at his election. According to an article by the ethnic Russian researcher from Moldova Alla Skvortsova from 2002, "polls and elections in the PMR may to some extent have been rigged".
Presidential elections were held in the breakaway republic of Transnistria on 1 December, 1991. These were the first such elections in the newly founded Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, and were won by Igor Smirnov, one of the country's founders. Smirnov faced two opponents: Grigore Mărăcuţă and Grigoriy Blagodarniy. Mărăcuţă would become an ally of Smirnov and was speaker of the Supreme Council until 2005. According to an article by the ethnic Russian researcher from Moldova Alla Skvortsova from 2002, "polls and elections in the PMR may to some extent have been rigged".
A referendum on the formation of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic was held in Transnistria between 1989 and 1990. The first voting took place in Rîbnița on 3 December 1989. In Tiraspol voting was held on 28 January. After the June congress of the local Soviet, voting was held in the districts of Bender, Dubăsari, Sloboza, Camenca and Grigoriopol. The overall total showed 98% voting in favour. The Pridnestrovian Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic was declared at the second meeting of the Soviet on 2 September 1990. According to an article by the ethnic Russian researcher from Moldova Alla Skvortsova from 2002, "polls and elections in the PMR may to some extent have been rigged".
A referendum on the withdrawal of Russian troops was held in Transnistria on 27 March 1995 alongside parliamentary elections. Russian troops had been stationed in Transnistria since the Transnistria War. Over 93% of voted in favour of the troops remaining in the territory. According to an article by the ethnic Russian researcher from Moldova Alla Skvortsova from 2002, "polls and elections in the PMR may to some extent have been rigged".
Moldova–Transnistria relations are the political and economic relations between the Republic of Moldova and Transnistria, an unrecognized state between the Dniester River and Ukraine. During the dissolution of the Soviet Union, political tensions in the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic led to Transnistria declaring independence from Moldova, culminating in the Transnistrian War of 1992. As part of the ceasefire agreement ending the war, a Joint Control Commission composed of Moldovan, Transnistrian, and Russian forces was established to supervise the demilitarized zone which was located in the Transnistrian region. The Joint Control Commission still supervises the zone, and negotiations to resolve the dispute are ongoing. The negotiations are supported by the Russian Federation, Ukraine, the United States, the European Union, and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
Romania–Transnistria relations are the bilateral relations between the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, internationally recognized as part of Moldova, and Romania. Romania does not recognize the independence of Transnistria.
