Criza identitară în Republica Moldova: între construcția națională, europenizare și influențele geopolitice externe [Articol]

Abstract

The identity crisis in the Republic of Moldova represents a structural phenomenon, generated by the interaction between Soviet identity engineering, incomplete post-Soviet nation-building, and competing geopolitical pressures exerted by the Russian Federation and the European Union/Romania. The article combines modernist, institutionalist (Brubaker), ethnogeopolitical, and ontological security theoretical frameworks with empirical data from censuses, ethnobarometers, and opinion polls. The analysis demonstrates that the predominant self-identification as “Moldovan” (over 75%) does not reflect an autonomous ethnic identity, but rather the continuity of an inherited institutional classification category, marked by ambiguity between ethnicity, nationality, and citizenship. In contrast, alternative indicators – the Romanian language spoken (~31%), support for union with Romania (28–38%), and pro-European orientation – reveal a de facto internalized Romanian identity among a significant segment of the majority population. Geopolitical fragmentation manifests through divergent orientations: ethnic Romanians pro-EU, minorities anchored in the Eastern space, and the majority Moldovans ambivalent. The younger generation emerges as the main vector of reconfiguration, with a visible pro-European convergence in rejecting Russian narratives regarding the war in Ukraine. The central conclusion is that Moldovenism functions as a flexible and pragmatic declarative identity, while Romanianness is expressed through symbolic practices and geopolitical options. The identity crisis remains a structural factor of insecurity, with implications for social cohesion and the state’s strategic orientation.