Moldova knows what path it should follow, expert

Compared with other countries, Moldova knows what way it should follow to come closer to the European Union, has good democratic references and foreign competences oriented towards the EU, the head of the Romanian Center for European Policies Cristian Ghinea said in the third meeting of the Press Club of the Foreign Policy Association on September 23, Info-Prim Neo reports. The report “Eastern Partnership – utilization instructions. Moldova as an opportunity” was presented in the meeting. Cristian Ghinea said the report sums up the results achieved after the launch of the Eastern Partnership. The study is addressed to the Western public and decision makers from the EU member states and contains two essential recommendations. The first is that the eastern Partnership is at the incipient stage and needs more consistency, while the second is that if this partnership gains consistency, Moldova would be the most successful of the six countries covered by this initiative. The report also contains recommendations for Moldova, including establishing markets for selling Moldovan agricultural products, especially wines, in the EU. Cristian Ghinea also said that Romania assumed the role of Moldova's advocate in the European integration process. The other partners accept Moldova's ambitions, but do nothing to hasten the integration process. Cristian Ghinea believes time has come to create a 'nervous center' that would coordinate the efforts to come closer to each other made by Romania and Moldova. In this connection, the executive director of the Foreign Policy Association Victor Chirila said Moldova now does not have a strategy for developing the relations with Romania and the new government should do something in this respect. Victor Chirila also said that Moldova is to get a large loan from the EU, but it will lose this loan if the government is not stable after the elections. The EU sends optimistic messages to Moldova despite the failure of the referendum. European experts come to Chisinau every week. Moldova can become a success story of the Eastern Partnership and could later be accepted as an accession candidate. According to Chirila, the European integration process means definite steps and the Transnistrian conflict will be an impediment in covering this path. Two more reports will be presented by the end of October. One will center on the EU's contribution to resolving the Transnistrian dispute, while the second on the assistance provided by the EU to Moldova. The meetings of the Press Club of the Foreign Policy Association are organized with support from the German Friedrich Ebert Stiftung Foundation Moldova.