Post-Soviet Moldova: A Borderland in Transition

By Charles King

Since its declaration of independence on 27 August 1991, the Republic of Moldova has confronted many of the challenges facing other ex-Soviet republics -- economic decline, political turmoil, inter-ethnic discord, and an uncertain relationship with the Russian Federation. Moldova\u2019s history, though, places it in a unique position among the post-Soviet states. Composed largely of lands annexed from Romania in 1940, Moldova is the only former Soviet republic that remains the potential object of territorial dispute. Moreover, the notion of a distinct Moldovan political and cultural identity -- cultivated in the Communist period to buttress the Soviet territorial annexation -- has remained a divisive issue among political groups within the country, as well as between Moldova and its Romanian motherland. Focusing on political developments from 1991 through 1994, this book examines the myriad of obstacles faced by Moldovan policy-makers in their attempt to construct an independent state in the post-Soviet era. Among the topics addressed are the debate over national identity, the developing party system, ethnic relations and territorial separatism, and economic reform. The author, Charles King, is the Ion Ra]iu professor of Romanian studies at Georgetown University in Washington D.C. One of the few researchers in the West working on post-Soviet Moldova, his studies have appeared in such prestigious journals as The World Today, Slavic Review, International Affairs, and Romanian Civilization.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 9739809111
• ISBN13: 9789739809115
• Release Date: June 1997
• Publisher: Center for Romanian Studies
• Length: 118 Pages
• Dimensions: 6.0" x 9.0"