Most of what is now Moldova was the independent principality of Moldavia in the 14th century. In the 16th century it came under Ottoman Turkish rule. Russia acquired Moldavian territory in 1791, and again in 1812 (the Treaty of Bucharest) when Turkey gave up the province of Bessarabia1 to Russia. Turkey held the rest of Moldavia but it was passed to Romania in 1918. Russia did not recognize the cession of this territory.
In 1924, the USSR established Moldavia as an Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. As a result of the Nazi-Soviet Nonaggression Pact of 1939, Romania was forced to cede all of Bessarabia to the Soviet Union in 1940. The Soviets merged the Moldavia ASSR with the Romanian-speaking districts of Bessarabia to form the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic. During World War II, Romania joined Germany in the attack on the Soviet Union and reconquered Bessarabia. But Soviet troops retook the territory in 1944 and reestablished the Moldavian SSR.
For many years, Romania and the USSR disputed each other's territorial claims over Bessarabia. Following the aborted coup against Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev, Moldavia proclaimed its independence in Sept. 1991, and changed its name to the Romanian spelling, Moldova.
Conflict between ethnic Romanians and the Russian-Ukrainian majority in Trans-Dniester erupted upon independence. Trans-Dniester separatists (primarily ethnic Russians and Ukrainians) fought for independence from Moldova in 1992; about 1,500 died in the conflict. Unrest continues in Trans-Dniester. In the south, Gagauz, which is composed mostly of Turkic Christians, has also attempted secession.
The Russian financial crisis in fall 1998 severely affected Moldova, which relied on Russia for 60% of its foreign trade. Economic disaster caused an exodus of an estimated 600,000 Moldovans since then—Moldova is considered the poorest country in Europe. In Feb. 2001, the Communist Party won an overwhelming victory in parliamentary elections, and their leader, Vladimir Voronin, became prime minister. Voronin has attempted to forge closer relations with Moscow, thus sparking protests among those who advocate for closer cultural and ethnic ties to Romania.
In July 2004, Trans-Dniester closed down several Romanian-language schools; Moldova retaliated by imposing trade sanctions.
