On June 24, Romania’s Chamber of Deputies approved a bill on union with Moldova, not by a vote, but automatically, through the so-called “tacit approval” procedure.
The text was tabled on April 14 by deputies from the opposition party S.O.S. România. Both the government and two relevant committees of the chamber, the legal committee and the human rights committee, issued negative opinions. The bill was nonetheless deemed adopted once the 45-day deadline set by Romania’s constitution expired: it was never brought to the plenary floor. Under Article 75 of the constitution, an initiative that deputies neither debate nor reject within that period is considered automatically approved.
“Tacit approval” reflects no real political backing. The government formally opposed the text, and the major parties favor Moldova’s European integration over an immediate legislative merger.
The bill reaffirms Romania’s commitment to the provisions of the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, signed in Helsinki in 1975, which allows for the alteration of borders by peaceful and diplomatic means. It authorizes the Romanian government to begin negotiations with Chișinău “as a matter of urgency” to “complete the process of unification.” Once the law is adopted and published in the Official Gazette, its authors intend that Moldova’s authorities, along with the United States, NATO, the UN and the EU, be notified.
The lower chamber’s decision is not final. The document now goes to the Senate, which acts as the decision-making chamber. Observers rate its chances of approval as minimal: the governing majority does not support the idea of immediate unification.
Moldovan President Maia Sandu told the French newspaper Le Monde in April that union with Romania would allow Moldova to speed up its accession to the European Union. Chișinău has not yet officially commented on the Romanian deputies’ initiative.
