President Dodon withdraws Basescu's Moldovan citizenship

Moldovan President Igor Dodon has signed a decree to withdraw former Romanian president Traian Basescu the Moldovan citizenship he had been awarded last year. Presented with this scenario, back in November, Basescu said he was going to bring Dodon to court.

Basescu and his wife Maria received the Moldovan citizenship from the neighboring country’s president Nicolae Timofti in June 2016. They had applied for it in March of the same year.

On 3 November 2016, Traian Basescu, alongside his wife, received the Moldovan citizenship at a ceremony hosted by the Embassy of Moldova in Bucharest. The former Romanian head of state also voted in the November elections, after endorsing publicly Dodon’s rival, Maia Sandu.

“I had an obligation, I took a public commitment to ask for the citizenship of the Republic of Moldova. I found out today president Timofti signed the decree and I am pleased,” Basescu told the press soon after it was announced he would receive the citizenship.

Asked what he will do if he loses the Moldovan citizenship, soon after the results of the November elections were published, Basescu said he was going to bring Dodon to court.

“Traian Basescu repeatedly called for the annulment of the Moldovan statehood through annexation to Romania. Ever since his mandate as president of Romania, he refused to recognize the existence of the Moldovan state and the existence of the Moldovan people. All of the above come into serious contradiction with the provisions of the supreme law – the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova. Moreover, during the procedure for granting the Moldovan citizenship to Basescu, numerous opinions from several institutions were ignored,” Dodon wrote on his Facebook page upon announcing the move.

“By withdrawing the citizenship of the Republic of Moldova to Mr. Basescu, I will fix the violation committed by the former president. Respect for the Republic of Moldova, for our people, for our centuries-long history, for our sovereignty and independence will continue to be a preoccupation throughout the duration of the mandate given by the people. And whoever attacks these values and realities will have to bear the consequences imposed by law,” Dodon’s message read.