MoldovaFOREIGN RELATIONS
View of downtown Chisinau
Courtesy Charles King
In the wake of its proclamation of sovereignty in 1990,
Moldova's main diplomatic efforts were directed toward
establishing new relationships with the Soviet Union's
successor
states, establishing diplomatic links with other national
governments and international bodies, gaining
international
recognition, and enlisting international support to
resolve the
conflict in Transnistria. Although substantial gains have
been
made in each of these areas, Moldova's foreign policy
efforts
have been complicated by its geographic position, its
history,
and the ongoing ethnic conflict within its borders.
After it declared independence, Moldova made
significant
progress in international relations in a relatively short
period
of time. The first state to recognize Moldova's
independence was
neighboring Romania. By early 1995, Moldova had been
recognized
by more than 170 states, including the United States
(which
extended recognition on December 25, 1991), although
foreign
diplomatic presence in Chisinau remains limited.
As of early 1995, Moldova had been admitted to several
international organizations, including the CSCE (renamed
the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, or
OSCE, in
January 1995), the United Nations (UN), the International
Monetary Fund
(IMF--see Glossary), the
World Bank (see Glossary),
the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
(EBRD), the
North Atlantic Cooperation Council, and the Community of
Riparian
Countries of the Black Sea. It also had observer status at
the
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the
World Trade
Organization (WTO), the successor to GATT.
By mid-1994 Moldova had accepted all relevant arms
control
obligations of the former Soviet Union. It had ratified
the
Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) Treaty (with its
comprehensive limits on key categories of conventional
military
equipment). Even though Moldova had not acceded to the
provisions
of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, it had indicated
that it
intended to do so.
Data as of June 1995
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