Europe · The modern states
Moldova
1990–present
Moldova declared independence in 1991. Almost immediately, the mainly Russian-speaking left bank of the Dniester seceded as Transnistria (the "Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic"), and a short war in 1992 ended with a ceasefire and the presence of Russian troops.
- Existed
- 1990–present
- Shown on the map
- 1992–2024
- Peak area
- 28k km²
- Region
- Europe
Overview
Moldova declared independence in 1991. Almost immediately, the mainly Russian-speaking left bank of the Dniester seceded as Transnistria (the "Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic"), and a short war in 1992 ended with a ceasefire and the presence of Russian troops. Transnistria functions as an unrecognised de facto state, dependent on Russia and recognised by no UN member. Moldova, among Europe's poorest countries, has pursued a pro-European course under President Maia Sandu (since 2020, re-elected 2024) and her Party of Action and Solidarity, despite persistent Russian interference. Present status (Sept 2026): parliamentary republic and EU candidate (since 2022); President Maia Sandu; the September 2025 parliamentary election returned PAS with a majority (about 50.2% and 55 of 101 seats amid documented Russian interference), and the premiership has changed hands within the PAS orbit (Alexandru Munteanu succeeded Dorin Recean in late 2025, with subsequent reshuffles into 2026, including Vasile Tofan as PM by mid-2026). Moldova completed the screening of its EU-law alignment in 2025 alongside Ukraine.
Common questions
- What was Moldova?
- Moldova declared independence in 1991. Almost immediately, the mainly Russian-speaking left bank of the Dniester seceded as Transnistria (the "Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic"), and a short war in 1992 ended with a ceasefire and the presence of Russian troops.
- When did Moldova exist?
- Moldova existed 1990–present. On this map it is drawn 1992–2024.
- How large was Moldova?
- At its greatest extent drawn on this map, Moldova covered about 28,000 km². That is the largest area the border data gives it across the years it is drawn, not necessarily its greatest extent in history.
Sources
This compendium cites its sources once for the whole document rather than per territory. Its bibliography names the English Wikipedia articles for each state as the primary basis, cross-checked against Encyclopædia Britannica, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the ICTY and the 2004 Wiesel Commission for genocide and atrocity figures, and current news reporting (Reuters, AP, BBC, and others) for 2025–2026 political developments, which should be verified against live sources. The article this entry is anchored on:
- Wikipedia — Moldova en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moldova
This entry was last updated .
This entry was researched and drafted with AI from the sources above, and has not been reviewed by a historian. How entries are made
Text available under CC BY-SA 4.0: reuse it with a credit to The World Through Time and a link to this page. Passages drawing on the Wikipedia articles listed above are also licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 by their contributors.
Border geometry for the map itself comes from Cliopatria v0.12 (Seshat Global History Databank, CC-BY-4.0).
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