Joe Biden's visit can remain merely symbolical if Moldova doesn't act, Victor Chirila

Victor Chirila, the director of the Foreign Policy Association, stated at a press club on Monday that the effects of the US Vice President Joe Biden's visit, considered to be symbolical by the Moldovan government, could be ephemeral if Moldova fails to act to fully achieve national strategic goals like European integration and resolution of the Transnistrian conflict. The expert thinks that the Republic of Moldova can have an European future if it continues the political, economic and social reforms that were launched last year. Victor Chirila said that Joe Biden's visit to Moldova can become a crucial moment for the creation of a bilateral strategic partnership, however there are a number of deficiencies that need be removed for this to happen. Chirila thinks that among the structural deficiencies inherited from the Communist government are the lack of an institutionalized dialogue between Moldova's Parliament and the United States' legislature, the lack of an institutionalized dialogue on foreign policy and regional cooperation issues, the inconsistency of trade and economic relations and the nonexistence of major American investment in key sectors of the Moldovan economy. The expert also mentioned the idleness of the Joint Committee on Economic Cooperation and Investment, which was established in 2003 and which held its latest meeting in 2005. “This is a big problem for the Republic of Moldova, because this committee did not cover only economic issues and US assistance, but also issues related to regional security and cooperation, and foreign policy matters”, said Victor Chirila. In this connection, the expert recommended the Moldovan authorities to develop a comprehensive strategy to build a strategic partnership with the US. “This strategy should cover political dialogue, regional, economic and cultural cooperation. Without clearly structured visions on these matters, I think it will be difficult to translate a strategic partnership with the United States into reality, and Mr. Biden's visit will remain merely symbolical”, concluded Victor Chirila.