Russians in Moldova and Russia mark 650 years of Moldova's statehood

Representatives of the Russians living in Moldova and Russia celebrated Moldova's statehood by a conference. They criticized the present government for their pro-European and pro-Romanian ideas and the young people who consider themselves Romanians, Info-Prim Neo reports. During the scientific conference “Moldova and Russia, 650 Together”, representatives of pro-Russian political and public organizations, historians, linguists and priests of the Moldovan Metropolitan Church tried to establish where the Moldovans and the Moldovan state come from, what geopolitical prospects Moldova has, what direction it should choose – the West or the East, and which the national interests of Moldova are. Doctor of Historical Sciences of Moldova Vladimir Taranov said the Moldovans come from the Carpathian peoples that appeared after living together with the Slavonic peoples. “Moldova and Russia have been together for 650 years,” he said. “We have many things in common. 20% of the words in the Moldovan language are of Slavonic origin. We have the same religion. Stefan the Great was married to the sister of Knyaz (Prince) of Kiev, while his daughter to Knyaz Ivan the Third,” Taranov said. According to him, Russia helped the Moldovan people in the difficult post-war period. It allocated US$1.5 billion for the country's industrialization and sent thousands of Russian specialists to Moldova after 1945 to alleviate poverty and reduce illiteracy. Russian historian Kirill Frolov spoke about the negative impact that the European Union makes on the traditions of the member states and would make on Moldova as well if it joins the European community. The present government was reproved for renaming the Moldovan language into Romanian, for removing the Integrated History and introducing the History of Romanians, for 'changing' the Christmas day, etc. The Moldovan young people with pro-Romanian and pro-European aspirations who consider themselves Romanians were also criticized. “The young people in Moldova do not know Russian as earlier and are not informed about the unconditional support provided by Russia over time,” the participants said.