The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius, who is in Chisinau on a working visit, said that his country will continue to support Moldova in its efforts to do reforms, but will not tolerate corruption. The official called on the Moldovan authorities to continue to implement difficult, but necessary reforms, IPN reforms.
After a meeting with his Moldovan counterpart Andrei Galbur, the Lithuanian minister said that he plans to meet with a number of Moldovan officials so as to transmit the message that Moldova is very important for Lithuania. Only the Moldovans can choose the path that they want to cover, while the EU will never impose particular models or reforms on them and will only provide advice and support.
As an example of support offered by Lithuania, Linas Linkevičius mentioned the fact that 5 of the 25 European experts who assist Moldova in implementing reforms are Lithuanian. These are experts in corruption fighting, reformation of justice, etc. He approved of the existence of the priority reform action roadmap, saying the country now follows the correct path.
The minister noted that it is very important for Moldova to sign a new agreement with the IMF in the near future so as to be able to benefit from the EU’s support. All the problems must be resolved in the banking sector by ensuring transparency. The justice sector should also be reformed as all the other efforts without this reform will be inefficient. Transparency is also needed in the energy sector. Also, the EU expects that the Moldovan mass media will be free and impartial.
Andrei Galbur said he discussed reforms with Linas Linkevičius, noting that the authorities managed to implement over 40% of the measures stipulated in the roadmap during only two months. The two agreed that the joint Moldovan-Lithuanian commission for European integration will meet in the second half of this year.
The Moldovan minister thanked the Government of Lithuania for keeping Moldova on the list of top seven countries that benefit from the country’s financial support. The officials also reiterated the bilateral interest in organizing this year the meeting of the intergovernmental commission for economic cooperation so as to agree how the people of Moldova, including those from Transnistria, can benefit from the Association Agreement with the EU.
Linas Linkevičius is paying a two-day working visit to Moldova at the invitation of Andrei Galbur. The Lithuanian official will yet have meetings with Prime Minister Pavel Filip, President Nicolae Timofti and Speaker of Parliament Andrian Candu.
