ABSTRACT
A large proportion of Moldova’s industry was created during the 1950s and accounts for over half of the gross national product. Being strategically positioned, Moldova was fought over and fragmented by the great imperial powers of Austria, Russia and Turkey for much of its history. The Soviet republic of Moldova was created by Stalin in 1939 under the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. Moldova was originally covered by steppe vegetation in the south and broadleaf forest in the north and sustained fauna representative of eastern Europe, the Balkan Peninsula and the Black Sea’s north shores. Moldova’s natural productivity is due largely to its rich agricultural soils, with chemozems covering 69% of the country. Moldova is further favored with extensive deposits of high quality construction rocks, clay, gravel, limestone, and sands, as well as small deposits of brown coal, oil, and iron ore that were discovered after 1948.
