Semion Grossu Explained

Semion Grossu
Office:First Secretary of the Moldavian Communist Party
Term Start:30 December 1980
Term End:16 November 1989
Predecessor:Ivan Bodiul
Successor:Petru Lucinschi
Office2:Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Moldavian SSR
Term Start2:1 August 1976
Term End2:30 December 1980
Predecessor2:Petru Pascari
Successor2:Ion Ustian
Birth Date:18 March 1934
Birth Place:Satu-Nou, Kingdom of Romania
Party:Communist Party of the Soviet Union (1961–1991)
Premier:Ion Ustian
Ivan Calin

Semion Grossu (born 18 March 1934) is a Moldovan politician and businessman.

Biography

Grossu was born on 18 March 1934 in the commune of Satu-Nou, Cetatea Albă County, Kingdom of Romania (nowadays Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi Raion, Ukraine). In 1961, he joined the Communist Party of Moldavia.

Grossu was the chairman of government of the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic (1 August 1976 – 30 December 1980) and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Moldovan SSR (1 September 1976 – 31 December 1980). He later became First Secretary of the Communist Party of Moldavia (30 December 1980 – 16 November 1989). He was the final Moldavian SSR leader to espouse the Soviet party line; his successor, Petru Lucinschi, was identified with aspirations for Moldovan independence, which was finally achieved in 1991.

Although being the first Soviet leader of Moldova to be fluent in Romanian, Grossu preferred to speak Russian in public during his tenures.[1]

Since 1991, Semion Grossu has been the chairman of the Russo–Moldovan winemaking firm, Product Impex SRL. In a video posted on YouTube in 2009, filmed by the Moldovan news source Internet TV, Grossu said he did not consider himself a public figure.

References

External links

Notes and References

  1. Igor CAȘU, "Patterns of succession : Top party elite recruitment in Soviet Moldavia and centre-periphery relations, 1940–1991", in Li BENNICH-BJÖRKMAN and Saulius GRYBKAUSKAS (dir.), Moscow and the non-Russian Republics in the Soviet Union : nomenklatura, intelligentsia and centre-periphery relations, London, Routledge, 2022, p. 84.