Moldova risks being excluded from the international road transport system TIR, well-known economic analyst Alexandru Burdeinyi, who manages InfoMarket Agency, projected in a comment quoted by IPN.

According to the analyst, the conflict between members of the International Association of Road Haulers (AITA) of Moldova endangers the contrary’s future participation in the TIR system. The TIR carnets enable the holders to swiftly go through customs procedures because the payment of customs duties in a country is guaranteed by the TIR system. Being recognized in a number of countries, the TIR system essentially reduces haulers’ costs and time spent.

The analyst said that Moldova’s exclusion from the TIR system will entail huge losses for haulers, beneficiaries and the budget. Today, the transport sector accounts for about 11% of the GDP, while 75% of the budget revenues come from customs duties paid on the import of freight.

Alexandru Burdeinyi said that owing to AITA, which was founded in 1992, Moldova was bypassed by transport crises and scandals like those that struck Ukraine, Russia, Romania and other states and the Moldovan haulers never encountered problems with the import-export documents.

“The AITA became an example for many countries, not only from the CIS, but also from Central and Eastern Europe. Many started to use the organizational and logistic system implemented by the administration of AITA in Moldova. Today Moldova has the best indicators in Europe as regards the organization and functioning of the TIR system,” said the analyst.

He highly appreciated the administration of AITA, criticizing the about 30 member associations of the total 460, which tried to promote their own interests, profiting from the fact that the organization’s statutes were to be modified. He considers that the acts of this minority group look like a raider attack that jeopardizes not only the work of AITA, but also the international road transport system of Moldova in general.

Similar viewpoints were stated by such known bloggers as Eugen Luchianiuc, Marcel Toma, Adrian Platon, and Cristina Gurez. Some of them said AITA is subject to a raider attack, while others recommended the ‘reformers’ from the Association to act within the law as their actions endanger the stability of the sector, the budget incomes and Moldova’s position in this field at foreign level and can lead to losses of dozens or even hundreds of thousands of jobs.