The United Kingdom, France, Germany, Romania, Poland, the European Council are among the best friends of the Republic of Moldova, President Maia Sandu, who participated in the European Political Community Summite, said in a post on her Facebook page.
“Keir Starmer, the British Prime Minister, who is also the host of the event, the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, the Federal Chancellor of Germany, Olaf Scholz, the President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, the Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, and the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, reaffirmed their support for the Republic of Moldova and appreciated the reforms we are implementing,” noted Maia Sandu, specifying that “at the European Political Community Summit, a series of friends of our country gathered to discuss cooperation for a peaceful and stable Moldova. We pledged to continue working together to make Moldova stronger and stronger, to maintain peace and, in this climate of security, to develop the economy and improve the living conditions of our citizens.”
On the eve of the meeting at the Blenheim Palace, a picturesque castle near Oxford in southern England, it was suggested that the birthplace of the famous British leader Winston Churchill could help the current leaders reinvigorate the format of the European Political Community.
EURACTIV wrote that the summit aimed to give participants the opportunity to “discuss some of the most pressing generational challenges facing Europe”, according to a statement from the UK Foreign Office on the eve. “The UK government will use the summit to discuss closer collaboration to tackle illegal immigration and greater security cooperation with European counterparts to keep Britain safe,” the institution said, forecasting that newly elected Labor Prime Minister Keir Starmer, whose government has announced the aim to “reset” relations with Europe eight years after Britain voted to leave the EU, will use the sidelines to improve contacts with EU counterparts.
Even though the official agenda of the “roundtables” referred to migration (the role of moderator falling to Italy and Albania), energy cooperation (EU and Montenegro) and protecting and ensuring democracy (France and Moldova), the public rightly expected the discussions to focus on Russia’s war in Ukraine and European security.
For the first time, the event was attended by representatives of NATO, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the Council of Europe.
According to people familiar with the summit preparations, as EURACTIV wrote, a more tangible discussion can be expected on Russia’s hybrid threats, with leaders expected to discuss and prepare the publication of further evidence that Moscow has sought to undermine democracies across Europe, from funding interference in elections to physical attacks on European soil.
