Ilie Bolojan, Romania's prime minister, declared Tuesday he would vote "yes" in a referendum on reunification with the Republic of Moldova, marking a significant shift in political discourse just as new polling reveals 56% of Romanians share his position.
Speaking to RFI, Bolojan framed his stance as consistent with Moldova's own leadership. "The affirmation of President Maia Sandu only confirms the attitude she has maintained throughout these years," the prime minister said, referencing Sandu's earlier declaration that she too would support reunification.
The timing is notable. A CURS poll conducted January 14-23 found that a majority of Romanians—56%—would vote favorably in a hypothetical referendum on unification, while 37% opposed and 7% remained undecided. The survey of 1,067 adults carries a margin of error of ±3 percentage points.
For Romania, a country that has carefully navigated the politics of its relationship with Moldova since the Soviet Union's collapse, this marks a departure from decades of diplomatic caution. The two nations share language, history, and culture—Moldova was part of Romania between the world wars—but reunification has long been considered politically fraught, particularly given Russia's influence in the breakaway Transnistria region and Moscow's broader efforts to maintain leverage in its former Soviet sphere.
Bolojan emphasized that Romania supports Moldova's pro-European path. The statement comes as Moldova, under Sandu's leadership, has accelerated its EU integration, opening accession negotiations and passing a constitutional referendum on EU membership in 2024 despite Russian interference efforts.
"In Romania, as across Eastern Europe, the transition is not over—it's ongoing," noted observers familiar with the region's post-communist dynamics. The reunification discussion reflects both nations' changing geopolitical calculus as the war in Ukraine reshapes the Black Sea region.
The poll suggests this is not merely elite sentiment. A clear majority of Romanians—across a probabilistic, stratified national sample—appear open to what would be one of Europe's most significant border changes since the end of the Cold War. Whether political will can translate into concrete action remains uncertain, particularly given the complex constitutional and international legal questions such a move would entail.
For now, Bolojan's statement represents a public acknowledgment of what many in Bucharest and Chișinău have long discussed privately: that reunification, once considered a distant fantasy, has entered the realm of serious political conversation.
