Moldova has a clear and structured relationship with the European Union in terms of the relations between institutions and at legislative level too. The country has access to the European electricity and natural gas networks. The EU increased the amount of products that can be imported from Moldova so as to offer the national producers a lifebuoy, Iulian Groza, executive director of the Institute for European Policies and Reforms (IPRE), ascertained based on the results of the implementation of the Moldova-EU Association Agreement, IPN reports.
“Despite the fact that the Republic of Moldova currently faces a number of crises, the European Union decided to offer us the status of candidate country in a record period of time and the decision was taken in a very special context - the war in Ukraine. In crisis situations, we can see the best how we can make use of the advantages offered to us by the European Union,” the IPRE director stated in the launch of the information campaign “Moldova is European”.
Iulian Groza explained that there are now nine basic conditions that the EU requested from Moldova. If the country fulfills these conditions, it can pass to the next stage, which is to open the accession negotiations with the EU. The negotiations center on at least 35 areas and Moldova can sign the Treaty of Accession to the EU only when all the areas are harmonized or there is a minimum harmonized standard. Before signing this agreement, the state must ask for the opinion of the citizens by a referendum.
Adrian Lupușor, national facilitator of the National Platform of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum, said that these conditions refer to the justice sector reform, transparency of public finances, deoligarchization of the country, protection of human rights, including of ethnical minorities. “These are conditions that are in direct correlation with the country’s development. It is important that the European integration agenda be exactly the agenda for the modernization and democratization of the Republic of Moldova. For me, this is the main reason why we consider that society should discuss more the given processes that are strategic for the country,” he stated.
According to the facilitator, the information campaign “Moldova is European” is designed to familiarize society with the itinerary for developing the bilateral relations between Moldova and the EU, including owing to the signing of the Moldova-EU Association Agreement, the process of accession to the EU and the advantages offered by the Europeans integration.
The Moldova-EU Associating Agreement was signed on June 27, 2014 and was ratified by Moldova’s Parliament on July 2, 2014. The European Parliament ratified the Agreement in its plenary session of November 13, 2014.
