Introduction: Contemporary Politics in Romania and Moldova

Romania and the neighboring Republic of Moldova share a long history of common culture, continuous interaction, and periodic common statehood. Both countries have grappled with the daunting problems common to all post-communist states, including managing the economic transition, developing democratic institutions, and establishing rule of law. Additionally, Moldova's incorporation into the former USSR following the Second World War and the significant degree of Russification that it experienced under Soviet rule left it facing a separate and distinct set of challenges. These included challenges to its sovereignty centered on the separatist Transnistrian regime established in 1990, deep ethnic and cultural divisions within its population, and...