Chisinau: Moldova officially withdrew from the Commonwealth of Independent States’ (CIS) founding treaties as the relevant legislation took effect. By a two-thirds majority, the Moldovan parliament recently approved the legislation necessary to withdraw from the CIS’s core treaties, including the founding treaty, the Charter, and the Alma-Ata Declaration.

According to Anadolu Agency, the CIS was founded in 1991 by several nations, including Russia, Azerbaijan, and Moldova, among others. However, following the election of Maia Sandu as president in 2020 and the formation of a pro-European government, Moldova suspended its participation in key CIS bodies. Sandu has abstained from attending any CIS summits since taking office, marking a clear shift in Moldova’s foreign policy orientation.

Since the beginning of 2023, Moldova has systematically abandoned agreements related to the CIS. On January 19, Foreign Minister Mihai Popsoi initiated the process of denouncing key CIS agreements. This move culminated in the Moldovan parliament’s approval on April 2 to withdraw from the CIS’s founding treaties, a decision that was ratified by Sandu on April 6.

In response to Moldova’s legislative actions, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova criticized the move as “destructive” to Moldova’s economy. She noted that the decision was made without open dialogue with the public and was pushed through by the parliamentary majority. Zakharova highlighted that, unlike with the 2024 EU membership referendum where citizens voted against, Moldovan authorities did not hold a referendum on withdrawing from the CIS, possibly to avoid a likely unfavorable outcome.