The European Parliament today approved a proposal to further open the EU market to some groups of fresh fruit imports from Moldova, in a bid to compensate Moldova's producers for their losses due to Russia's politically-motivated ban on imports of Moldovan produce, the EP said in a press release.
The measure, that passed with a score of 551 to 67 and 23 abstentions, will allow Moldova to export duty free 40,000 tonnes of apples, 10,000 tonnes of table grapes and 10,000 of plums.
"The importance of the regulation approved today goes far beyond some quantities of apples, grapes and plums. It serves as a demonstration of solidarity in the face of hardship: it is a breath of fresh air for a sector of vital importance to the Moldovan economy, which is affected by an irrational Russian ban, just like the EU itself", said rapporteur Sorin Moisa (Romania) after the vote.
The European Commission proposed the fruit import concession in response to an urgent appeal from Moldova for EU support. This measure comes on top of trade preferences granted to Moldova as part of the “deep and comprehensive free trade area” with the EU, established by the EU-Moldova association agreement, which the European Parliament ratified last month.
Imports from Moldova accounted for 0.1% of the EU total in 2013.
The duty-free import quota, which still needs to be formally approved by the EU Council of Ministers, is to apply retroactively from August 2014 and expire at the end of 2015.
