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Moldovan President Maia Sandu has said she would vote in favor of unification with Romania if the issue were put to a referendum, stressing that it is becoming increasingly difficult for Moldova to “survive” on its own.
She made the statement during an interview on the British podcast The Rest Is Politics.
“If there is a referendum, I will vote for unification with Romania,” Sandu said.
The president noted that Moldova, a country of about 2.4 million people located between Romania and Ukraine, has become a target of Russia’s hybrid warfare, including disinformation and election interference. “Look at what is happening around Moldova and what is happening in the world. For a small country like Moldova, it is becoming increasingly difficult to survive as a democracy, as a sovereign state, and to resist Russia,” she said.
At the same time, Sandu acknowledged that most Moldovans do not currently support the idea of unification with Romania. In contrast, she described EU membership — for which Moldova applied in 2022 — as a “more realistic goal.”
She also recalled previous concerns about Russian attempts to influence Moldova’s parliamentary elections, including false reports of bomb threats at overseas polling stations, while noting that Moldovan authorities were prepared and worked with other countries to ensure voting was not disrupted.
In December 2023, the European Council approved the start of accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova. Earlier, Sandu called on the EU to establish a modern version of the U.S. Marshall Plan to support the recovery of Moldova and Ukraine.
