Zinaida Greceanii: Moldova imposed no visa ban

Moldova’s Prime Minister Zinaida Greceanii said that Moldova imposed no restrictions on the entry into Moldova, including for Romanian nationals. “If persons were stopped at the border, there were legal reasons for doing so. No illegal reasons could be invoked, especially now before the legislative elections,” the Premier said at a news conference in Chisinau on Tuesday, quoted by Info-Prim Neo. At the same time, Greceanii made it clear that one of the reasons for not allowing a number of Romanian citizens to cross the Moldovan border is related to the election campaign. “Have we ever afforded or allowed our nationals to leave for another country, a neighboring country and get involved in the election campaign there? No, never. Why shouldn’t we be reciprocally respected? Why should someone come to our country with, let’s say destructive intentions, including during the election period?” the Premier asked. “No one is allowed to interfere in the internal affairs of our state. There are international observers empowered to monitor the elections in our country,” Greceanii added. She expressed her confidence that this incident would not affect somehow the relations between Moldova and the European Union, which includes Romania. “The European Union knows very well these things,” the Prime Minister argued. Yet, Zinaida Greceanii denied that Moldovan nationals had been also stopped at the border. “Our citizens can come back to the country. No one can ban them from entering their own country,” she said. The Premier assured that all the cases will be investigated and the relevant bodies will provide information. She also said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration is preparing a response note for the Romanian Foreign Ministry. About 300 Romanians and Moldovans claimed they were not allowed to enter Moldova. Romania’s Foreign Minister Cristian Diaconescu expressed his concern about the fact that the Romanian nationals are regularly stopped at the border with Moldova and asked for explanations from his Moldovan counterpart. The Moldovan Foreign Ministry has not yet provided an answer.