Norway remains an important partner along Moldova’s path of reforms, especially in the field of justice and rule of law, fight against corruption, and good governance, stated Nicu Popescu, Deputy Prime Minister/Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, during a meeting in Oslo with his Norwegian counterpart, Anniken Huitfeldt.

The Moldovan MFA&EI said in a press release that the discussions with the Norwegian top diplomat addressed a wide range of topics such as bilateral cooperation, the need to strengthen energy security and the positive impact of Norwegian assistance for the development of the Republic of Moldova. The officials spoke about the developments in the Moldova-EU dialogue in the context of our country obtaining candidate status and the reforms undertaken by the Moldovan authorities to advance on the European path, as well as the regional situation and the measures taken by the Chisinau authorities to mitigate the impact of the Russian military aggression in Ukraine.

Foreign Minister Nicu Popescu expressed his interest in advancing the negotiations on the Free Trade Agreement between the Republic of Moldova and the EFTA member states, thus contributing to the intensification of trade through bilateral agreements and by expanding the presence of agricultural products from our country on the Norwegian market.

The Kingdom of Norway is a major producer of oil and gas in Europe – with production that contributes significantly to the energy security of the European continent. And in this context, Minister Nicu Popescu had a discussion in Oslo with the Norwegian Minister of Oil and Energy, Terje Aasland. “We also talked about the need for coordination and solidarity that we must demonstrate in order to overcome the crisis situation. We want to engage in a continuous dialogue regarding the establishment of a long-term energy partnership for the benefit of citizens and the national economy”, Nicu Popescu said.