A legislative proposal submitted by the fringe, far-right SOS Romania party regarding the union of Romania with the Republic of Moldova was adopted tacitly on Wednesday, June 24, by the Chamber of Deputies.
The legislative initiative was submitted to Parliament back in April and received a negative opinion from the Government. The Legal Committee and the Human Rights Committee of the Chamber of Deputies also issued negative opinions.
Despite this, in the absence of a debate and a vote in plenary, the bill was considered tacitly adopted after the expiry of the constitutional 45-day deadline, according to ProTV.
The document authorizes the Government of Romania to begin “urgent” negotiations with the authorities in Chișinău for the “finalization of the union with the Republic of Moldova.” According to the text of the legislative proposal, after the adoption of the law and its publication in the Official Gazette, the competent international authorities, the Government of the Republic of Moldova, the United States of America, NATO, the UN, and the European Union would be notified for the implementation of the provisions of the law.
At the same time, the bill reaffirms the initiators’ attachment to the provisions of the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) in Helsinki, which allows the modification of borders through peaceful and diplomatic means.
However, the bill has not yet entered into force, since the upper chamber of the Parliament, the Senate, is the decision-making body in this case.
Nevertheless, the bill’s passing by the Chamber of Deputies sparked criticism from the former pro-Russian president of the Republic of Moldova, Igor Dodon. “It is regrettable that politicians in Romania have launched such an imperialist policy, which risks creating disputes between the two countries. And it is shameful that politicians leading Moldova remain silent or tacitly approve Romanian territorial expansionism,” he claimed in a post on Facebook.
About 38% of citizens of the Republic of Moldova would vote for unification with Romania in the event of a referendum, according to a recent opinion poll conducted by Ates Research Group. On the Romanian side, nearly 72% of Romanians would vote in favor of unification with the Republic of Moldova if a referendum were held.
In April of this year, Moldovan president Maia Sandu said that reunification with Romania could accelerate her country’s accession to the European Union, while stressing that such a decision must be backed by citizens.
(Photo source: Michele Ursi|Dreamstime.com)
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