IPN on April 10 published an OP-ED entitled “Can Memorandum with Eurasian Union diminish Moldova’s European agenda?”, written by politologist Dionis Cenusa, who analyzed the content of the Memorandum of cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Union signed by the President of Moldova Igor Dodon in Chisinau, in the presence of the Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission Tigran Sargsyan. The motto of the analysis is “The Memorandum of cooperation, as the observer status in the Eurasian Union, which Russia is purportedly ready to offer to Moldova, can have serious medium- and long-term effects on the European integration processes in the country. Currently, these can serve more for media war and (geo)political propaganda purposes...”.

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The European Union opened two new information centers in the Republic of Moldova – one at the Town Public Library of Rascani and another one at the District Public Library “A. Donici” in Orhei. The visitors of the new centers will have access to information and specialized literature about the EU’s history and human rights, animated cartoons, teaching aids for children, journals, international treaties, maps, etc. The opening of the new information centers was possible within the pilot program launched in partnership with the network Novateca. The cooperation is designed to contribute to the modernization of public libraries in the Republic of Moldova, for the benefit of the people. Currently, in Moldova there are 20 EU Information Centers, situated in most of the district centers.

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Moldova’s exports to the EU and the effects of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA) on national producers two years after its implementation were analyzed within a study that was presented by the independent think tank “Expert-Grup” on April 11. In 2016, Moldova’s exports saw an upward trend. Romania remained the most important trading partner of Moldova, followed by Italy and Germany. Urszula Pałłasz, Head of the Political, Press and Information Section of the EU Delegation to Moldova, said that through the Association Agreement and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement, the EU’s relations with Moldova develop in a new way, centered on the political association and economic integration. The EU wants Moldova to be a resistant country and this can be achieved by strengthening cooperation between the state institutions. In this regard, the state apparatus should be reformed.

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”Currently, the country’s pro-European course is subject probably to the biggest risk since its appearance in the Republic of Moldova as a political idea, not only since 2009. It is one of the conclusions of the IPN analysis
“What do Moldovans want and what can power offer them?” that was published on April 11, 2017. The conclusion is based on the last polls, which continues to confirm the parity of the pro-Eastern and pro-Western options of Moldovan citizens, with particular variations, in objective conditions, when the influences coming from the East cannot be univocally described as support or assistance. According to the author, the given data show the Moldovans are not yet sufficiently prepared to fully understand where the sources of prosperity to which they aspire really come from. For its part, this misapprehension is fueled powerfully by particular actions and initiatives of the power, which is now bi-cephalous in Moldova, including the referendum proposed by President Igor Dodon and the replacement of the electoral system initiated by the PDM.

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Over 50 employees of public institutions based in Chisinau, who are involved in the implementation of the Association Agreement, were trained how to prevent the misinformation about the European integration agenda of the Republic of Moldova. These were familiarized with the main communication methods and techniques used by the East StratCom Team and with the method of applying these in local context. Created in March 2015, East StratCom is a component part of the European External Action Service focused on proactive communication of EU policies and activities in the Eastern neighborhood, namely Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, and on combating of propaganda.

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The Government on April 12 created a group led by Minister of Finance Octavian Armasu to hold negotiations with the European Commission on the draft Financing Agreement between the Republic of Moldova and the European Union on macro-financial assistance (MFA). The €100 million in macro-financial assistance would help the country meet its short-term financing needs. Up to €40 million of the MFA would be provided in grants and up to €60 million in medium-term loans at favorable financing conditions. The new assistance would be disbursed in three installments in 2017 and 2018. Disbursements under the MFA program would be strictly conditional on good progress with the IMF program and on the implementation of specific policy conditionality to be agreed between Moldova and the EU.

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The pupils in the gymnasium of Bratuleni village of Nisporeni district have enjoyed a better thermal comfort at school for three winters already, and, since this year, the community kindergarten will have a biomass heating plant and will be provided with hot tap water produced by solar collectors. The Energy and Biomass Project, Phase II, is a three-year project conducted during 2015-2017. The project has a total budget of €9.41 million granted by the European Union. It continues the first phase of the project, implemented in 2011-2014, with a total budget of €14.56 million offered by the European Union (€14 million) and UNDP (€560,000).

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The Republic of Moldova should work out a new Customs Code according to the standards of the European one. It is one of the recommendations of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, which this week presented a report on the regulatory and procedural barriers in the trade with Moldova in Geneva. On April 13, the Moldovan authorities announced that they should yet implement a series of projects to ensure transparency, such as to create a portal for trade regulation. They should also improve the quality infrastructure by adjusting the standardization, metrology and compliance assessment processes to the new requirements. Moldova was also recommended to improve the standards in agriculture, the sanitary and phytosanitary measures and to simplify customs procedures.

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A bill that envisions the harmonization of the national legislation on the marking of food products with the European one was endorsed by all the competent bodies in the field and is to be submitted to Parliament for adoption. Vice director general of the National Food Safety Agency Ion Toma said the European legislation envisions only the indication of the use-by date of a food product, not yet the production date. Currently, the national legislation obliges the producers to indicate the production date and the use-by date on the products. Those who do not comply are liable to punishment.

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The provision of the observer status for the Eurasian Economic Union to Moldova is rather symbolic in character, said Speaker of Parliament Andrian Candu. He told the press than any international agreement must go through the ratification procedure in Parliament to take effect. “It is a political gesture and President Igor Dodon continues the message promoted in the election campaign. He does not bring benefits as society is again divided and he should better identify solutions and projects to consolidate it,” stated the Speaker. He also said that any observer status in an organization does not affect the relations with the European Union of which the Republic of Moldova is an associate, the cooperation with the EU being at another level.
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In the context of the intensification of political debates on the European integration of the Republic of Moldova, IPN News Agency asked a number of resident EU ambassadors in Chisinau to state their views and recommendations related to the state of affairs, starting from the experience of the own countries on the road to the EU. His Excellence Ambassador of Lithuania to Moldova Rimantas Latakas said Lithuania will continue to support the European integration aspirations of the Republic of Moldova. Referring to the advantages of this process enjoyed by this country, he noted that the average salary of Lithuanians rose two times in all the sectors of the economy. Another important indicator refers to the consumer basket, which represented 50% of the European level before integration into the EU and now represents more than 74% of the EU consumer basket. Lithuania managed thus to outstrip some of the states that integrated into the European Union before it. On the other hand, Lithuania learned from the positive experience of the EU and implemented high standards.

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The summary of news from the IPN series “European Integration” is produced with support from the Hanns Seidel Foundation of Germany and can be further disseminated on condition that the source is indicated.