The European Parliament voted in favor of doubling the amount of particular Moldovan agricultural products exported to the EU tariff-free for a year, MEP Siegfried Mureșan announced through social media.
The proposal was adopted by 572 votes for, 28 votes against and 32 abstentions. “The war in Ukraine seriously affected the farmers in the Republic of Moldova, blocking exports of agricultural products to the Eastern countries. That’s why I repeatedly asked in the European Parliament to liberalize the export of agricultural products from Moldova to the European Union. I also asked this through the resolution on the Republic of Moldova that I initiated and that was adopted by the European Parliament on May 5,” wrote the MEP.
He noted that by this vote, the European Parliament showed its solidarity with the farmers and with all the citizens of the Republic of Moldova. “The European Union is already the main commercial partner of the Republic of Moldova. Almost two thirds of the Moldovan exports go to the European market. I would like the measure adopted today not to remain a temporary one and to represent a new step towards the integration of the Republic of Moldova into the European single market,” said Siegfried Mureșan.
At the start of June, the European Commission approved the proposal to double quotas on seven agricultural products, the export of which has not yet been fully liberalized: plums, table grapes, apples, tomatoes, garlic, cherries and grape juice. For a year, twice as many of these products can be sold to the EU without tariffs. The liberalization will help Moldovan producers and businesses overcome the loss of Russian, Belarusian and Ukrainian markets due to Russia’s war on Ukraine.
