Victor Chirila: U.S. wants to extend and strengthen partnership with Moldova

The Moldovan governmental delegation headed by Prime Minister Vlad Filat obtained more than it hoped for during its visit to Washington, considers analyst Victor Chirila, the executive director of the Foreign Policy Association, Info-Prim Neo reports. Victor Chirila said the program of the Moldovan delegation's visit to Washington did not include a meeting between the Moldovan Premier and the U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, who found yet time to welcome Filat. By that meeting, Joe Biden showed that Washington in now fully open to and sympathizes with Moldova. “The discussion with Joe Biden gave a new impetus to developing the partnership with the U.S.,” the expert said. Referring to the speech given by the U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during the signing of the agreement for financing the US$262 million Compact Program, Victor Chirila said several important messages were sent to the Government of Moldova. “For example, Missis Clinton said that the U.S. Government is ready to extend and strengthen the partnership with the Moldovan Government, aimed at facilitating the further development of democracy, rule of law and market economy,” the expert said. Victor Chirila also said that Hillary Clinton destroyed the older myth that Moldova is not expected in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. “Hillary Clinton ended her speech with a symbolic message. No other U.S. high ranking official said such a message before. She said that the U.S. Government wants that Moldova become a member of the Euro-Atlantic Alliance,” Victor Chirila said. “Though it is clear that Moldova's entry into this organization is not an immediate objective, this assertion should serve as a powerful motivation for the Moldovan authorities to continue the reformation process that will bring Moldova closer to the Euro-Atlantic standards.” Asked if the U.S. officials' statements about Moldova's future membership in NATO could put the Russian authorities on alert, Victor Chirila said a possible partnership between Chisinau and Washington centering on Moldova's entry into the NATO will definitely bother the Russian strategists and politicians. Therefore, the expert stressed one should realize that Moldova's possible accession to NATO is a long-term process that must be carried out intelligently so as not to harm the relations with other important partners, including Russia. Another problem as regards Moldova's entry into NATO is the Moldovan people's mentality that continues to be dominated by Soviet stereotypes from the period of the cold war and had been fueled powerfully by the former Communist government during the last few years. Hillary Clinton reiterated the United States' position that the political solution to the Transnistrian conflict should be identified at talks in the 5+2 format, which involves the U.S. and the EU. “This message comes to support the Moldovan authorities in their efforts to achieve the set objectives,” Victor Chirila said. In conclusion, Victor Chirila said that Vlad Filat's visit to Washington during January 19-23 shaped a clear and credible view on the further development of the relations between Moldova and the U.S. “The opinions expressed by Vlad Filat coincided with that of Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden. All of them laid emphasis on democracy, promotion of the human rights and development of the market economy in Moldova,” Victor Chirila said.