Speaker Marian Lupu tells CoE officials of Parliament's intention to allocate money to support civic initiatives

The cooperation between the civil society and authorities is an instrument stimulating and developing participative democracy, said Moldovan speaker Marian Lupu in his speech at the European Conference of Parliament Presidents from the member-states of the Council of Europe, held on May 23 in Strasbourg, Info-Pim Neo reports. According to the speaker, the Chisinau parliament and the civil society develop a new cooperation frame. Marian Lupu says the Parliament opts to set up public funds to support the civic initiatives. Marian Lupu has met with a number of European officials. The subject of the authorities' cooperation with the civil society was discussed with Louis Maria de Puig, the president of the CoE Parliamentary Assembly. According to communique by the Parliament's press unit, Louis Maria de Puig pleaded to continue the cooperation between the Parliament and the associative sector to ease the citizens' access to taking decisions. The top official is expected in Moldova in July. Marian Lupu has met with Christian Poncelet, the president of the French Senate. The speaker asked for the further support of this country, when it gets the EU presidency, to start a new arrangement between Moldova and the EU. The two discussed on launching the Twinning Project (a program of inter-institutional cooperation with EU countries). In accordance with this project the legislatures from France and Hungary will assist the Chisinau parliament to develop, modernize and create necessary conditions to adjust the national legislation and practice to the EU standards. Marian Lupu has discussed with Ceslovas Jursenas, the president of the Lithuanian Parliament, on the bilateral relationships. Ceslovas Jursenas reconfirmed the Vilnius authorities' availability to back up Moldova on its European path. The Moldovan official was invited to pay a visit to Lithuania in September. With his Hungarian counterpart, Katalin Szili, Marian Lupu has tackled bilateral matters, as Katalin Szili confirmed to participate in the coming reunion occasioned by the launch of Twinning Project planned in September in Chisinau.