By passing the law on unification, Romania has begun the process of annexing the Republic of Moldova, pro-Russian socialist Igor Dodon claims. In fact, the draft bill, introduced by Diana Șoșoacă's party, was advanced through a technical loophole rather than a vote, and it is highly unlikely to pass the Senate, where it lacks the necessary political backing.
NEWS: Romania has officially begun the annexation of Moldova, the former Moldovan President Igor Dodon wrote on his Telegram channel. “Romanian authorities, specifically the Chamber of Deputies, have officially acknowledged the initiation of procedures to prepare for the annexation of the Republic of Moldova," the politician stated. "The entire Moldovan population wants to see whether Maia Sandu and the Action and Solidarity Party will accept this 'unification', which means the erasure of the Moldovan state, or if they will oppose it with the utmost determination", Dodon noted.
As the former president pointed out, the lack of response from Moldova's leadership, whose members hold Romanian citizenship, can be viewed as a betrayal of national interests. Dodon criticized Bucharest's intentions, labeling them imperialistic. “And it is shameful that the politicians currently in power in Moldova remain silent or tacitly approve of Romanian territorial expansionism”, the former Moldovan head of state concluded.
NARRATIVES: 1. Romania has launched the process of annexing the Republic of Moldova. 2. The government in Chișinău supports the annexation of the Republic of Moldova by Romania.
PURPOSE: To instill the idea that Romania, a revanchist state, has begun annexing the Republic of Moldova, a scenario supposedly opposed by the majority of the population, particularly ethnic minorities. To foster the perception of an imminent external threat and the inevitable loss of Moldovan sovereignty. To frame the administration in Chișinău as actively working to destroy Moldova's statehood.
The bill passed the Chamber of Deputies via a technicality, but needs votes in the Senate that SOS has no way of getting
WHY THE NARRATIVES ARE FALSE: Igor Dodon's reaction follows the Chamber of Deputies' “hushed” adoption of a legislative initiative tabled by MPs from the SOS Romania party, led by Diana Șoșoacă, which outlines the “unification of Romania with the Republic of Moldova”. According to the text, “the Parliament of Romania empowers the Government to urgently and immediately initiate negotiations with the authorities in Chișinău to finalize the unification with the Republic of Moldova”.
In actual fact, this is merely a technical procedure where a legislative initiative is automatically deemed approved by the first chamber it is introduced to if it is not brought to the floor for debate within 45 days of registration, which is exactly what happened with the SOS Romania bill. From this initial chamber, the draft bill moves to the Senate, which holds final decision-making power. In the Senate, a law cannot pass without being debated and submitted to a formal vote. SOS is widely viewed as an extremist party, and its leader's combative nature has triggered disputes even with fellow sovereignist factions. The party is therefore politically isolated and commands very few seats in Parliament, making it highly implausible that it could ever rally enough support for one of its bills. Furthermore, the initiative has already received negative reviews from both the Legislative Council and the Economic and Social Council.
Romanian politician: Șoșoacă introduces these bills just to show that Romanians oppose unification
It is worth noting that Șoșoacă introduced a similar bill three years ago, which was soundly rejected by the Romanian Parliament. At the time, Liberal politician Ludovic Orban argued that the initiative actually worked against the unification of the two states, pointing out that Diana Șoșoacă, an overt Russophile who openly flaunts her sympathy for Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin, knows full well her project cannot get the required support. “The unification of Romania with the Republic of Moldova, with Bessarabia, is not achieved through draft bills that violate international treaties and break with everything that is normal and proper in a process that, in my view, is natural and will happen if we truly desire it. It is not done through laws that essentially play right into the hands of those who oppose the unification of Bessarabia with Romania, both here and across the border. Because the true purpose of this bill, written by a bootlicker at the Russian Embassy, is to signal to Bessarabians that the Romanian Parliament voted against the unification of Romania with the Republic of Moldova”.
BACKGROUND: Diana Iovanovici-Șoșoacă, notorious for her anti-EU and anti-NATO stances, is the sole Romanian parliamentarian to attend the St. Petersburg Economic Forum, where she openly praised Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The topic of unification with Romania, one that is frequently weaponized by certain politicians and Russian propaganda as a bogeyman to frighten ethnic minorities, has gone extremely viral in recent months. This follows comments by President Maia Sandu indicating she would vote in favor of unification if a referendum were ever held. However, her remarks are frequently stripped of context. In fact, she made it clear that since the concept of merging with Romania does not have majority backing among the public, the administration has pursued European integration instead, which enjoys widespread support. “As president of the Republic of Moldova, I recognize that there is no majority in favor of a Unification with Romania, but there is a majority that supports joining the European Union, and so this is the path we are pursuing. It is a far more realistic goal and it helps us safeguard our sovereignty”.
Igor Dodon, the former president of Moldova who is well-known for his alignment with Moscow, regularly deploys talking points generated by Russian propaganda, including this latest spin on a supposed annexation, with a view to causing a fracture in society, as Veridica has previously documented.
GRAIN OF TRUTH: The Chamber of Deputies approved a legislative initiative regarding the unification of Romania and the Republic of Moldova through an automatic technical procedure. However, the move carries absolutely no legal weight.
