The massive bank fraud known as the “heist of the century” has marked Moldova's steepest decline since its independence on many key directions, including in terms of politics and morals. This is argued in an IPN analytical piece titled “Independence 2015: The Year of Decline, the first and the last”. Columnist Valeriu Vasilica suggests that the losses recorded over the past year should be measured not by the direct costs but first of all by the opportunities that have been missed despite unprecedentedly favorable conditions.
“As regards European integration, Moldova has lost a lot, if not everything. Pursuing this path, we must start from the beginning or even behind the zero mark. Our European partners suspended funding on reasonable suspicions that some of the stolen money could have been taken directly or indirectly from the generous assistance provided by them in the last few years”, says the columnist.
However the columnist goes on to argue that even greater is the loss of trust which would be recovered far slower than the funding itself. “Once voiced for the first time by a key figure of the European system, Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland, the descriptions 'captured state', 'state in the hands of oligarchs' or '[country] on the brink' will remain for a long time to characterize Moldova in the most official manner, pushing the country further away from a candidate status, not to mention EU membership. Such prospects have long since faded, compared to two or three years ago and especially since the inception of European integration as a state policy in 2009”.
The analysis further discusses the problem of Moldova's reputation in Europe. “Twenty-four years into independence, Moldova is perceived as a potential European security threat, with the captured state status being one of the reasons. Never before in its history has it received such a rating. This is why, as said earlier, this is the Year of Decline which, oddly enough, occurs amid the most favorable political, financial, regional and geopolitical conditions the Republic of Moldova has ever seen. This is why we can't go any lower, because lower would imminently means destroying the European idea as a state policy and majority option”, concludes Valeriu Vasilica in the IPN analysis “Independence 2015: The Year of Decline, the first and the last”.
