From: American-Romanian Ad Hoc Committee of New York
Re: The 2022 Russo-Ukrainian war and Romania
Date: 28 June 2022
Open letter
As American citizens of Romanian origin we bring to your attention the case of Romania and Moldova in the light of the current Russo-Ukrainian war.
Romania is a solid NATO member and a loyal American ally. The Republic of Moldova is a truncated part of Bessarabia, a Romanian province annexed by the USSR in 1940 together with northern Bukovina following the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact of August 1939. The infamous pact has been repudiated since, including by its signatories, Germany and Russia, but its tragic consequences for Romania have never been addressed and redressed.
The boundaries of modern Romania were established during the Paris Peace Conference following WWI in accordance with the recommendations of the U.S. President Woodrow Wilson. In 1940 and then again at the end of WWII the eastern Romanian provinces were annexed by Moscow. This compelled an American diplomat write that those lands represented “the most critical territorial problem bequeathed to the present generation as a direct legacy of the age-old Eastern Question.” (Malborne Graham, “The Legal Status of the Bukovina and Bessarabia,” American Journal of International Law, Vol. 38, Oct. 1944, p. 667.) This territorial dispute has remained unsolved ever since.
In 1991, as a result of the dismemberment of the USSR, the Republic of Moldova declared its independence, but it has remained as a ground of operations of the KGB and its FSB Russian successor. In addition, Moscow helped the left bank of the Dnestr River of Moldova (Transnistria) declare its own independence. In this region Russia maintains important elements of the former Soviet 14-th Army and huge quantities of arms and ammunitions used now to threaten both Moldova and Ukraine.
It is worth mentioning that after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the American Congress passed a resolution stating that the people of the former Romanian lands annexed by Moscow in 1940 should be free to choose what country they want to be part of. Please, see for details U.S. Senate Resolution 148 of June 26, 1991. Here is a summary:
… To express the sense of the Senate that the United States should support the right to self-determination of the people of the Republic of Moldavia and northern Bucovina… Now, Therefore, be it Resolved,
That it is the sense of the Senate that the United States Government should–
(1) Support the right of self-determination of the people of Soviet-occupied Moldavia and northern Bucovina and issue a statement to that effect; and
(2) Support future efforts by the Government of Moldavia to negotiate peacefully, if they so wish, the reunification of Romania with Moldavia and Northern Bucovina as established in the Paris Peace Treaty of 1920, the prevailing norms of international law,and in conformity with Principle 1 of the Helsinki Final Act.”
The current conflict in East Europe is a clear Russian challenge to the status quo of Europe and to the present global order. Yet, peace must be reestablished, but it should be rooted in justice. In this situation, we strongly suggest that the United States, the United Nations, the European Union as well as other responsible nations and international organizations preoccupied with the promotion of peace and justice in the world should start to consider the annulment of the consequences of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact for Romania.
As informed citizens we are ready to help the process of redressing this historic injustice with all our means, knowledge and possibilities.
Sincerely
Nicholas Dima, PhD, Analyst, Committee Coordinator
Mirela Roznoveanu, Writer-Journalist, Ad Hoc Committee secretary, New York
Cristi Boghian, Producer and Manager, Romanian TV, NY
Grigore Culian, Editor, New York Magazin
