The resumption of discussions on the submission of the application for membership in the European Union will depend on the results of the 2018 parliamentary elections, Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration Iurie Leanca said, answering a question put by IPN News Agency. In a news conference on January 26, Iurie Leanca said that only by having a pro-European majority and a government powerfully committed not only to the democratic, but also to the pro-EU values, will Moldova be able to ask for the status of candidate for EU membership.
According to Iurie Leanca, the crisis experienced by the country in 2015 left a powerful imprint on Moldova’s perception in Brussels. ”Then, with our own hands, we diminished the chances of joining the European Union,” said the Deputy Prime Minister, noting that Moldova does not have another way than the European one. “When we return to a more intense dialogue, we will return to the calendar when we could submit the application for EU membership,” stated Iurie Leanca. He noted it would be ideal to return to the discussion during the Romanian presidency of the EU, in 2019. In this regard, the Deputy Prime Minister will go to Bucharest to assess Moldova’s chances and decide what should be done to move things on.
Iurie Leanca also referred to the executive’s priorities for the next eight months, before the start of the election campaign. Thus, emphasis will be placed on the implementation of the Association Agreement, the intensification of the dialogue with the EU and on the institutional and functional analysis of the mechanism of coordinating the implementation of the Association Agreement at the level of state institutions. At internal level, emphasis will be placed on the justice sector reform and operationalization of what the integrity system means.
The Deputy Prime Minister said that during his visit to Brussels of January 22-23, he noticed the European officials’ readiness to continue the dialogue with the Republic of Moldova. Among the key subjects discussed were the macro-financial assistance, energy security, continuation of the implementation of the Association Agreement and investigation of the banking fraud. This March, Moldova could get the first tranche of the micro-financial assistance.
In another development, Iurie Leanca said he does not intend to create a bureau that would assist him in achieving the European agenda. The European Integration Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration is the entity with which he will cooperate in this regard.
