Speaker and interim President: We apologize to the Romanian people for Communist insults

Speaker and interim President Mihai Ghimpu recently told InfoRusia that he would like to apologize to the Romanian people, who he said were insulted by the former ruling Party of Communists (2001-2009).

“They [the Party of Communists] insulted Romanian citizens and Romania as a state. I am sorry and I hope it never happens again. I hope that Moldovan citizens will no longer vote for people who do not know how to value ties between people, between states, who do not recognize their own language, culture, and history," Mr. Ghimpu stressed.

He added that “Romania is not Moldova's neighbor. It is a state that speaks the same language, that has the same culture, the same history, and the same identity. I don't think I will anger anyone by saying that we need very good ties with Romania."

The former ruling Party of Communists has had a very tense relationship with Bucharest since it took power in 2001. The conflict peaked after the April 2009 protests in downtown Chisinau, when Communist head and then-President Vladimir Voronin accused Romania of trying to stage a coup. The Prosecutor General's office later said that Romania has not been involved in the protests "as a country."

At that time, the Romanian Ambassador to Chisinau was also thrown out of the country.

There is a long-standing disagreement in Moldova over whether the language spoken by the majority should be called Romanian or Moldovan (although even Communists acknowledge that the two are essentially indistinguishable) and whether the majority ethnic group should be called Romanian or Moldovan. Generally speaking, the Party of Communists is in the "Moldovan" camp, while many Alliance for European Integration members have said they consider themselves Romanians.

h/t www.hotnews.md