Petru Lucinschi (; born 27 January 1940) is a former Moldovans politician who was Moldova second President from 1997 to 2001. He currently serves as the founder and head of the Lucinschi Foundation of Strategic Studies and International Relations.
Early life and education
Petru Lucinschi was born on 27 January 1940 in Rădulenii Vechi village, Soroca County, Kingdom of Romania (now Florești district) into the family of Kirill Vasilievich Lucinschi. Lucinschi carries a transcribed version of the Polish surname , but has never publicly identified with a Polish heritage. In 1962, he graduated from Chisinau State University. During his studies, he was the secretary of the local Komsomol. From 1963 to 1964, he was engaged in Komsomol work in the
Soviet Army. He has a
PhD in
Philosophy (1977) from the Russian Academy of Sciences in
Moscow.
Career in the Communist Party
In 1964, he was admitted to the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. From 1971, Lucinschi was a member of the Executive Committee (
Politburo) of the Central Committee of the Communist Party in
Moldavian SSR.
He was the only native
Moldovans in the leadership of Communist Party of Moldova at that time, when the leadership of Moldavian SSR was almost completely in the hands of people from outside the republic or
.
[Mihail Bruhis - "Rusia, România și Basarabia", Universitas, Chişinău 1992, page 314]
From 1978 to 1989, he was First Secretary of Chișinău City Committee of the Communist Party of Moldova.
In early 1991, he was appointed Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, so he again left Moldavian SSR for Moscow.
Immediate post-Soviet career (1991–1997)
In 1991, he was appointed as Ambassador of Moldova in Russia. On 4 February 1993, he was elected as Speaker of the Moldovan Parliament, being re-elected on 29 March 1994 for a new term. He held the position until 1997.
Presidency (1997–2001)
Lucinschi was elected
Moldova's second president in November 1996. Upon his assumption to office, many Western media outlets portrayed him as a Moscow man who remained oriented toward the Soviet past. He was often seen as the lesser evil to
Vladimir Voronin from the Party of Communists.
[ Monitor, 21 martie 2001, Moldova's President Bows Out] Under his leadership, the reforms started by his predecessor
Mircea Snegur were continued. It also marked the beginning of Moldova's distance from the nations of the Commonwealth of Independent States and closer relations with the
European Union. Over his four years in power, the Lucinschi administration was marked by fierce confrontations in Parliament. He served until 2001, when he called a snap election, and the Parliament voted in favour of
Vladimir Voronin.
Foreign policy
Russia and CIS
During his presidency, he advocated for close ties with Russia.
He was friendly with Azerbaijani leader
Heydar Aliyev, as they had worked together in the Soviet government and had been acquainted as leaders of their republics since 1970, when Lucinschi visited Baku.
Post-presidency
Since leaving office, he has continued to meet with his former counterparts, including Azerbaijani leader
Ilham Aliyev,
Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev,
Estonian president Arnold Rüütel,
and Ukrainian president
Leonid Kravchuk.
Upon the death of former Russian president
Boris Yeltsin, he described him as a politician who "paid a lot of attention to the national aspirations of countries of the USSR conglomerate", saying in addition that he "played an essential role for young independent states like Moldova".
In 2018, he published his book
Pyotr Kirillovich Luchinsky – Member of the Politburo and President, authored by Russian writer Mikhail Lukichev.
In early 2019, President
Igor Dodon invited Lucinschi together with ex-president
Mircea Snegur on a tour of the newly renovated Presidential Palace,
which was in need for repairs for over a decade. In 2020, Lucinschi, along with 49 fellow members of the Nizami Ganjavi International Center based in
Baku, called for international action to tackle new waves of the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he personally assisted Ukrainian families in settling down in Chisinau.
Personal life
Lucinschi was married to Antonina (d. 2006), a retired
schoolteacher, and has two sons, Sergiu and
Chiril Lucinschi. Chirill is a businessman and politician who was as member of parliament as well as a professional basketball player.
Awards
Domestic
Soviet
Foreign
-
Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour (France, 1998)
-
Order of Redeemer (Greece, 1999)
-
Grand Order of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre (Greek Orthodox Church, Jerusalem, 2000)
-
Medal "Bethlehem 2000" (Palestinian National Authority, 2000)
[ Medal of Bethlehem, 2000]
-
Order "Star of Romania" (Romania, 2000)
-
Medal "In Commemoration of the 850th Anniversary of Moscow" (Russia, 6 September 1997)
-
Honorary Citizen of the City of Astana
