The Moldovan diplomatic service should work to rid the country of the image of an ex-Soviet country or a country in transition and make effort for this to distinguish itself as country that belongs to the Western civilization and a part of the European family. The diplomatic service should maintain a good image of the country abroad and should be dynamic and focused on results and should present the internal realities from the perspective of the rule of law, the legislation and the national interest, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration Tudor Ulianovschi stated in the annual meeting of the Moldovan diplomatic service that is staged by the Ministry during July 9 – 11, IPN reports.
Speaking about the European integration as the main emphasis of the foreign policy, the minister said this is a red line of Moldova’s internal and foreign policy. Progress on the path of European integration cannot be made if there is a shortage of trust and the situation should be changed. But the change can be made not only in Brussels. That’s why the ambassadors should work prodigiously in the capitals of the EU member states by having prompt and permanent contact coordinated with the representatives of the power and factors of influence in the European countries where they work. Tudor Ulianovschi also spoke about the problem of economic diplomacy, noting that each embassy should set clear objectives concerning the promotion of trade and attraction of investment and should work out a concrete commercial-economic agenda with short, medium and long-term objectives.
Referring to the country’s reunification, the minister said in the dialogue with decision makers and the diplomatic corps of other states, the conviction that the Transnistrian conflict will be solved exclusively by peaceful political ways, by negotiations, with the country keeping its neutrality as a strategic foreign policy option and enshrining the European course in the Constitution, should be strengthened. In connection with the UN resolution on the withdrawal of the Russian troops from Moldova’s territory, Tudor Ulianovschi expressed his conviction that the elimination of the military and force factor would bring only benefits to the political settlement of the conflict and to the process of building confidence between both sides of the Nistru.
The minister noted that being a neutral county, the respect for the international law and consolidation based on the criterion of the UN charter are the only protection that Moldova can enjoy in the international security sector. “We should clearly plead for the intangibility of the international law and against a world order with distributed spheres of influence. Also, in order to strengthen its own security, Moldova should more intensely cooperative with NATO, passing to a more advanced stage that would not run counter to its neutrality policy.
Speaking about the activity of each embassy, Tudor Ulianovschi said the relations with Romania and Ukraine are an absolute priority in achieving the national strategic objectives at foreign level, Romania being naturally the most reliable ally of Moldova in the European integration process, while Ukraine being involved in beneficial cooperation concerning border control and the Transnistrian settlement process. The strategic Moldova – U.S. dialogue should be further materialized at its real value, while the relations with Russia should return to normality by sticking to the international law principles and the UN Charter. Within the CIS, Moldova focuses on economic cooperation and should plead for the de-politicization of this cooperation. Trade with the CIS is on the wane and the relations with the Commonwealth should be thus reviewed.
At multilateral level, the Republic of Moldova should clearly define its country objectives. The UN, OSCE, UNESCO, OIF, the regional multilateral cooperation formats and GUAM should become permanent rostrums with great visibility so that Moldova could find its positon in the global and regional systems of values, noted Tudor Ulianovschi.
The annual meeting of the Moldovan diplomatic service that was held after a hiatus of six years centers on issues related to the activity of embassies and its enhancement, the implementation of foreign policy and setting of new tasks and priorities for a short and medium terms.
