The politics of Moldova take place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, wherein the prime minister is the head of the Government of Moldova, and a multi-party system. The President of Moldova has no important powers. The government exercises executive power while the legislative power is vested in the Parliament. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The position of the breakaway region of Transnistria, relations with Romania and with Russia, and integration into the EU dominate political discussions.
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 Social Democratic Party is an extra-parliamentary political party in Moldova currently led by Victor Șelin.
Ilie Ilașcu is a Moldovan-born Romanian politician, especially known for being sentenced to death by the separatist Transnistrian government for alleged involvement in two murders and for actions which have been described as Moldovan state-sponsored terrorism by Transnistrian government officials.
Yevgeny Vasilyevich Shevchuk is a Transnistrian former politician who served as the second President of Transnistria, from 2011 to 2016.
Aleksandr Radchenko was an ethnic Ukrainian politician and human rights activist from Transnistria. A former Soviet military officer, he was the editor of a small opposition newspaper in Tiraspol called Chelovek i ego prava. Most of his articles deal with human rights issues.
The state of affairs with human rights in Transnistria has been criticized by several governments and international organizations. The Republic of Moldova, and other states and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) claim that the government of Transnistria is authoritarian and has a record of arbitrary arrest and torture.
A double referendum was held in Transnistria on 17 September 2006. Voters were asked whether they approved of the possibility of renouncing independence and integration with Moldova, or alternatively independence and a possible future integration into the Russian Federation.
The mass media of Transnistria, the breakaway territory within the borders of Moldova, features both state-owned or supported outlets and opposition media. Publications are in Russian, with a single newspaper in each of the other two official languages, Moldovan (Romanian), and Ukrainian.
The Transnistrian Communist Party is a communist party in the unrecognized state of Transnistria. The party was led by Oleg Khorzhan until his arrest and imprisonment in 2018.
The Social Democratic Party of Transnistria was a social-democratic political party in Transnistria.
Law enforcement in Transnistria is administered by the region's own police force. Transnistria functions as a presidential republic, with its own government, parliament, military, paramilitary and police (militsiya) force, constitution, currency, postal system and stamps, flag, national anthem, and coat of arms.
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.
The following is timeline of the History of independent Moldova which started after the independence of Moldova.
Anatol Țăranu is a Moldovan former politician and diplomat.
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).
Presidential elections were held in Transnistria on 12 December 2021 with early voting starting on 6 December 2021. Two candidates were able to register to participate in the elections — incumbent president Vadim Krasnoselsky, and Sergey Pynzar, who came in second in 2016.
The so-called Berlin Plus package is the name given to a series of eight points that were agreed to be implemented in a protocol signed in 2016 during a meeting of the 5+2 format that took place on that year in Berlin, Germany, to improve the situation of the Transnistria conflict between Moldova and the unrecognized breakaway state of Transnistria. These eight points, which had been under negotiation since 2012, are the following:
The Yushchenko Plan, also referred to as the Ukrainian Plan, was a unsuccessful 2005 plan developed by then-President of Ukraine Viktor Yushchenko and Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Petro Poroshenko in an effort to bring an end to the Transnistria conflict by peaceful means with the support of Moldova and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
