Moldova’s European prospects depend on reforms, Iurie Leanca

“During the rule of the AEI, the challenges hindering the improvement of the relations with the European Union, faced by Moldova, were overcome,” Foreign Minister Iurie Leanca said in a conference themed “Priorities and challenges of Moldova’s foreign policy”, Info-Prim Neo reports. According to the minister, two years ago the cooperation relations with the EU were suspended owing to the Communist government, while with the IMF were frozen owing to the difficult relations with the EU. “We managed to cope with this situation and this is a very positive element. If we speak about the relations with the EU, the most serious challenge now is the fact that Moldova is not yet a country with clear European prospects recognized in Brussels and in the member countries,” said Iurie Leanca. He stressed that definite steps should be taken to obtain clear European prospects. Moldova’s chance will depend on the ability to modernize itself and promote reforms. The Head of the EU Delegation to Moldova Dirk Schuebel said that in 2013 the EU plans to provide over €100 million in financial assistance to Moldova, or even more. He stressed that the country will have clear European integration prospects only if continues to implement the reforms launched two years ago. The conference “Priorities and challenges of Moldova’s foreign policy” was organized by the Foreign Policy Association in cooperation with Friedrich Ebert Foundation Moldova.