The Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of the Romanian parliament, has approved a draft law on unification with Moldova. This was reported on June 24 by the Romanian agency Agerpres.
The authors of the material clarify that the draft law was submitted to parliament on April 14, but the chairman of the Romanian Senate, Natalia Elena Intotero, said that the deadline for reviewing the draft had expired on June 24, "therefore, it is considered tacitly adopted."
According to the proposed bill, the Romanian Parliament confirms its commitment to the final act of the OSCE Helsinki Conference, which recognizes the possibility of peaceful diplomatic border change and decides on the unification of Romania and the Republic of Moldova.
The draft provides for the immediate start of negotiations with Chisinau on integration. At the same time, it is noted that the final decision on the potential transition of Moldova under Romanian jurisdiction should be made by the Romanian Senate.
Moldovan President Maia Sandu allowed unification with Romania on April 28 in order to speed up the EU accession process. She added that the accession is possible without taking into account the unrecognized Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (PMR). Sandu confirmed her intention to prepare Moldova for EU membership by 2030.
Moldovan Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Mihai Popsoi said on May 30 that he supports unification with Romania and is ready to vote for it in the event of a referendum. According to him, discussion of concrete steps towards unification will become possible with the appearance of "significant openness."
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on June 2 that Moldova's possible annexation to Romania would mean the absorption of the republic, rather than the unification of the two states. According to Zakharova, such a scenario could lead to the loss of Moldovan national identity, culture and traditions.
