The recognition of the European prospect, at least for such countries as Moldova, which are determined to follow the European path and which achieved good results in this respect, will strengthen the pro-European forces in these states, Head of Parliament Igor Corman said in a news conference held in Vilnius alongside the Speakers of Lithuania, Georgia, Latvia, and Armenia, on the sidelines of the Conference of Heads of Parliament of the EU Member States.

Igor Corman underlined that Moldova from the very beginning was a very active participant of the Eastern Partnership initiative, which started to implement its European agenda in 2009 and is to begin to reap the harvest this year. The European Parliament recently decided to abolish the visa requirements for Moldovans, who will be able to travel freely in the Schengen Area starting with April 28.

The Speaker also said that Moldova intends to sign the Association Agreement, including the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement, as soon as possible.

Igor Corman expressed his concern about the situation in the region, but voiced hope that the effort made by the international community will lead to a halt in the separatist tendencies in Ukraine. “As you know, Moldova also faces a separatism problem in the Transnistrian region. We hope that the situation in Ukraine will stabilize as a result of the effort made by all the countries involved,” he stated.

He noted that Chisinau in mid-May will host the Summit of Heads of Parliament of the Nordic-Baltic Countries, which is an initiative that supports Moldova’s European course.

The Conference of Heads of Parliament of the EU Member States is taking place on April 6-8.