Even if it is a risky affair, the political cooperation with the Democrats offers a “coexistence” area that can become useful. Moreover, the constitution of the government coalition eliminates the pressure of snap elections that could be held simultaneously with the local elections, political pundit Dionis Cenușa stated in a feature article for IPN Agency.
In his post-electoral speech, President Dodon specified two major reference points based on which he and his party, the PSRM, will judge upon forming a government coalition.
Firstly, the future governance will take place only with the participation of political parties. This way, President Dodon openly excludes the backing of any hybrid coalition formed by the dismemberment of parliamentary groups.
Such a message represents a warning against any attempt by the Democrats to corrupt or intimidate the Socialists by the model used in 2015-2016 against the Party of Communists (PCRM) and the Liberal Democratic Party (LDPM), reminded the expert.
The second significant principle suggested by Igor Dodon for the future governance is to develop a balanced foreign policy. This objective implies the restoration of the relations with Russia, which was promised by President Dodon when taking up office in 2016.
The speech about the re-balancing of the foreign policy includes special emphasis on the struggle to promote “the pro-Moldovan” interests, which also necessitates a friendly relationship with Russia. The “pro-Moldova” foreign policy expresses specifically the selectivity principle applied by the Socialists and the Democrats in the relations with foreign partners, in particular the Western ones.
Dionis Cenușa considers governance together with the Democrats contains many unknowns as regards the multiple weaknesses of the Socialists that are used as pressure instruments, and also the political survival strategy of Vladimir Plahotniuc and his circles.
The PSRM can anytime withdraw in case of a coalition with the Democrats, leaving the government vulnerable in front of a no-confidence motion. There is also a high probability that the future Parliament will try to launch initiatives to remove President Dodon from office, given the presence of the bloc ACUM.
In practical terms, to cooperate with the Democrats and to avoid “traps”, the Socialists need guarantees in the form of the redistribution of particular state institutions and, mandatorily, the liquidation of the criminal cases, if these were initiated against members of the PSRM.
It is highly improbable that a regime of exhaustive and mutual transparency will be established between the two parties, but the setting of coexistence “red lines” is essential, concluded the politologist.
