conventional long form: Republic of Moldova
conventional short form: Moldova
local long form: Republica Moldova
local short form: none
former: Soviet Socialist Republic of Moldova; Moldavia

MD

republic

Chisinau

10 juletule (singular - juletul) 1
municipality* 1 autonomous territorial unit**; Balti, Cahul, Chisinau,
Chisinau*, Dubasari, Edinet, Gagauzia**, Lapusna, Orhei, Soroca,
Tighina, Ungheni

27 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

Independence Day, 27 August 1991

new constitution adopted 28 July 1994; replaces old
Soviet constitution of 1979

based on civil law system; Constitutional Court reviews
legality of legislative acts and governmental decisions of resolution;
it is unclear if Moldova accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction but
accepts many UN and Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe (OSCE) documents

18 years of age; universal

chief of state: President Petru LUCINSCHI (since 15 January 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Dumitru BRAGHIS (since 21 December
1999), one first deputy prime minister and two deputy prime ministers
cabinet: selected by prime minister-designate, subject to approval of
parliament
elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term;
election last held 17 November 1996; runoff election 1 December 1996
(next to be held NA November-December 2000); according to the Moldovan
constitution, the president, on consulting with the parliament, will
designate a candidate for the office of prime minister; within 15 days
from designation, the prime minister-designate will request a vote of
confidence from the parliament regarding his/her work program and
entire cabinet
election results: Petru LUCINSCHI elected president; percent of vote -
Petru LUCINSCHI 54%, Mircea SNEGUR 46%; Dumitru BRAGHIS was nominated
by the president 16 December 1999 and was elected prime minister by a
parliamentary vote of 57-4 (40 abstentions) on 21 December 1999

unicameral Parliament or Parlamentul (101 seats;
parties and electoral blocs, as well as independent candidates,
compete in popular elections to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 22 March 1998 (next to be held spring 2002)
election results: percent of vote by party - PCM 30%, CDM 19%, PMDP
18%, PFD 9%; seats by party - PCM 40, CDM 26, PMDP 24, PFD 11
note: the comparative breakdown of seats by faction is approximate

Supreme Court; Constitutional Court is the sole
authority of constitutional judicature

Bloc for a Democratic and Prosperous
Moldova or PMDP ; Christian Democratic Popular Front
or FPCD ; Communist Party or PCM [Vladimir
VORONIN, first chairman]; Democratic Convention of Moldova or CDM
; Party of Democratic Forces or PFD [Valeriu
MATEI, chairman]

ACCT, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE,
CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD,
IFC, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM
(observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)

chief of mission: Ambassador Ceslav CIOBANU
chancery: 2101 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:  (202) 667-1130
FAX:  (202) 667-1204

chief of mission: Ambassador Rudolf Villem PERINA
embassy: Strada Alexei Mateevicie, #103, Chisinau 2009
mailing address: use embassy street address; pouch address - American
Embassy Chisinau, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-7080
telephone:  (2) 23-37-72
FAX:  (2) 23-30-44

same color scheme as Romania - three equal vertical
bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; emblem in center of flag
is of a Roman eagle of gold outlined in black with a red beak and
talons carrying a yellow cross in its beak and a green olive branch in
its right talons and a yellow scepter in its left talons; on its
breast is a shield divided horizontally red over blue with a stylized
ox head, star, rose, and crescent all in black-outlined yellow