Before the turn of the year, IPN looks back on the events that had the biggest impact in Moldova and asks experts to comment on their immediate effects, as well on what we should expect of them in the long term.
---
Moldova, alongside Georgia and Ukraine, signed on June 27, in Brussels, the EU Association Agreement. Both experts and officials presented the AA as a platform for reforms in various fields: justice, human rights, consumer's protection, education, etc. Victor Juc, deputy director of the Institute of Legal and Political Research within the Moldovan Academy of Sciences, said that with European integration a strategic priority, signing the AA is an incontestable success for Moldova. According to him, the AA raised the political and legal relations between the two sides to a new level, replacing the Agreement of partnership and cooperation signed in 1994, as Moldova deserved more in its progress on the path to European integration.
Victor Juc said that the 5th title of the AA “Trade and trade-related matters”, also known as the Free Trade Agreement, is a mechanism of support but also of economic reformation. The expert sees the current economic situation in the country as a continuation of transition, under-development, inefficiency, weak competitiveness, even though the EU was generous in 2007 and granted Moldova autonomous trade preferences, establishing an asymmetric trade regime. “The preferences were to expire in 2015 and we don't know if they would have been extended, even if the EU raised the quota for imports from Moldova. The FTA creates an opportunity for economic reformation, especially of agriculture and this must be accompanied by rural development and the transformation of villages into something more modern, more 21st century-like”, said the expert.
He argued that the AA is an important mechanism for carrying out reforms because reforms must be backed financially and the EU is generous with Moldova, offering financial assistance especially for the reform of justice. “The AA is also important due to the fact that European agencies pressure the Moldovan authorities to implement reforms. It is proven in our country that without external pressures, reforms don't happen and the EU demands a reform each time it offers some kind of assistance”, explained Juc.
The expert stressed that the geopolitical factor cannot be overlooked. “The events in Ukraine accelerated the signing of the AA and the process of ratification because it's the first time when the EU intervenes geopolitically in Eastern Europe. Before the events in Ukraine, Eastern Europe was considered Russia's sphere of interest and the EU wasn't involved. I think this consideration obliges us to say that signing the AA is very good result for Moldova”, added Juc.
The deputy director of the Institute of Legal and Political Research thinks it is too early to speak about the immediate effects of this event, even if trade with several EU members increased. The agreement will be a true success when Moldovan products will be sold on the German, French, Italian, Spanish and even British markets. Juc noted that expectations are high regarding Moldova's European integration, but the country needs the support and political will from the EU. Now it's Moldova's turn and a lot depends on how it will implement the AA and democratic reforms. According to Juc, the new governing coalition has to carry out a vast program of reforms in order to bring the country into the 21st century.
---
Note: As part of this series, we have already reviewed the obtaining of the liberalized visa regime with the EU on 28 April 2014. The other events to be recapped are the signing of the Moldova-EU Association Agreement, the Russian embargoes, the November 30 election and the formation of the parliamentary majority.
Mariana Galben, IPN
