Why Moldova's new prime minister called a "kamikaze" and what it means for Ukraine
The Moldovan parliament is set to officially approve the composition of the new government this week. Maia Sandu has chosen the prime minister and determined who will be in the cabinet. Officially it is the prime minister, not the president, who appoints members of the government in Moldova, but the political reality is somewhat different.
The incoming prime minister, Alexandru Munteanu, who has lived in Ukraine for about 20 years, is expected to play the role of a kamikaze, as the times call for unpopular, perhaps even painful reforms.
Read more about Moldova’s next prime minister and the challenges he will face in the article by Sergiy Sydorenko, European Pravda's editor: Moldova's "kamikaze PM" from Ukraine: will he resolve the Transnistrian conflict with Russia?
The choice of Alexandru Munteanu as the next prime minister came as a complete surprise to ordinary Moldovans and to most politicians – and it wasn’t only because his name had not appeared among the likely candidates.
The main question being asked in Chișinău was "Who is he?" Before mid-October, very few people in Moldova had even heard of him.
The incoming prime minister has maintained an almost non-existent public profile.
The incoming prime minister lived in Ukraine for about 20 years. His main business operations are based in Kyiv, and he was there when the full-scale Russian invasion began.
According to his personal Facebook page, which is open only to friends, the incoming Moldovan prime minister moved to Kyiv 20 years ago. He lists Kyiv as his place of residence, and his profile photo is of several flags, with Moldova’s flag in the centre.
This small detail reflects rather accurately what Ukraine and Moldova mean to Munteanu.
The heart of Munteanu’s business interests is in Kyiv, where he founded and runs 4i Capital, an investment company focusing on the Ukrainian and Moldovan markets. Over the past two decades, and particularly in recent years, he has learned Ukrainian, but he has not become Ukrainian in terms of either citizenship or identity.
Munteanu has confirmed that he holds three citizenships – Moldovan, Romanian and US (he says he was also eligible for French citizenship but declined) – but is not a Ukrainian citizen. Top officials holding multiple citizenships is neither problematic nor publicly criticised in Moldova.
Since Moldova has only two neighbours, Ukraine and Romania, Ukraine is of huge importance to Chișinău. Now, with both countries sharing aspirations for EU integration and the context of the full-scale war, this importance has grown even further. This factor seems to have played a role in the selection of candidates for prime minister.
Paradoxically, Munteanu’s lack of strong ties to the country – and the fact that he does not seek to build a personal political future in Moldova – may actually be an advantage.
It removes the political "brake" on implementing painful reforms.
The new Moldovan government is still drawing up its programme. The only thing known for sure is that it will be based on the party’s main election pledge – to complete EU membership negotiations by 2028.
But the overarching mission of the new government may well turn out to be the reintegration of Transnistria.
The new deputy prime minister for reintegration, who will be responsible for the Transnistria issue, also had to be brought in from Kyiv.
The position will be held by Valeriu Chiveri, Moldova’s ambassador to Ukraine, whose diplomatic posting is now coming to a close. He reportedly arrived in Chișinău on Sunday for an interview with the incoming head of government.
But is Moldova’s top leadership ready to cut the Transnistrian knot?
Alexandru Munteanu recently stated on TV-8 that "the issue of reintegration is a priority for the government" – a rather unusual thing for a Moldovan official to say, given that Chișinău has consistently ignored this problem for years, realising that it would produce no political benefits but would certainly cause headaches.