The Declaration of Sovereignty of the Republic of Moldova stands at the basis of the country's European integration aspirations. Twenty years after the proclamation of Moldova's sovereignty, the Alliance for European Integration has reconfirmed the commitment to achieve the goals outlined in the Declaration, Info-Prim Neo reports. Speaker Mihai Ghimpu, Moldova's acting president and once deputy in Moldova's first democratically-elected parliament, stated on Wednesday, June 23, at a festive session in Parliament, that the adoption of the Declaration of Sovereignty was a logical and natural process brought about by the national liberation movement that started in the late 1980s. “It was the first step that ended the rule of the Soviet laws. This document, whose worth is inestimable, laid the foundation of the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova”, said Mihai Ghimpu in his festive speech. Prime Minister Vlad Filat spoke about the process of Moldova's European integration. “It is crucial that the referendum and the parliamentary and presidential polls would not lead to the destabilization of the state of affairs. I count on the fact that all the political actors are aware of the great responsibility that falls on their shoulders. The country needs stability to continue the on-going reforms”, said Filat. Moldova's first president Mircea Snegur recalled that at the moment of adopting the Declaration of Sovereignty there were divided opinions among the legislators. The most reluctant were those from the Sovetskaya Moldavia party, but the promoters of sovereignty eventually managed to muster a majority of votes. Deputy Speaker Serafim Urecheanu, also a legislator in the first Parliament, said sovereignty shouldn't be just declared, but also respected. Alexandru Mosanu, the first speaker of Parliament (1990-1994), said a critical retrospective of the 90s events is needed in order to avoid past mistakes from repeating themselves. MP Dumitru Diacov declared that the Alliance for European Integration has been formed by four “sovereign parties” which he called to consensus. The Declaration of Sovereignty was adopted on 23 June 1990 by the first democratically-elected parliament of the Republic of Moldova, which proclaimed the country's independence one year later, on 27 August 1991, paving the way toward a democratic society.