{Info-Prim Neo interview with Farit Mukhametshin, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Moldova, from the series “Independent for 21 years: we, the Former Soviet States”. ORIGINALLY published on 13 August 2012 } [ - Since the declaration of independence, your country has had the same starting point for modernization, renovation, as Moldova. How close or how far away are we from each other nowadays?] - Many things were happening for the first time in our countries, after the fall of the Soviet Union. Russia and Moldova had stopped being parts of one strong whole, and had started building new rules of Law, based on principles faithful to democracy, supremacy of Law, priority of human and citizen rights. And, albeit following different development paths, our countries are still linked by many things. First, it is the rich history, of hundreds of years, of the relations between our peoples and our hardworking people, who are gifted and have the sense of responsibility. In their majority, the citizens of our country are interested in using the strategic potential of the interaction between Russia and Moldova, ready to put effort into Russian-Moldovan collaboration and the improvement of its quality. [ - Where did your country do better, and where did it do worse, on the path of independent evolution. And, compared to Moldova?] - Over the course of the years that followed the adoption of the Declaration of sovereignty, and those were tough years, Russia has, after all, gained many things. Our own experience emerged, not an easy one, but all the more precious, and along with it appeared what we call our own modern history. Russia has taken, without exaggeration, its worthy place in a modified globalized world; our country is open to everything new and advanced, while basing on the accumulated potential of stability. Today we can safely say that the social order, the economy and people’s way of living have radically changed in Russia. The most important thing is that we have strengthened ourselves as a united country and nation. There is still much to be done. We can all see the profound transformations that happen in the contemporary world; international relations become more and more complicated, the international community is far from creating an universal and undividable security system; there are no current certain solutions for overcoming the global economic crisis. Under such conditions, the most important thing for Russia is to successfully continue modernizing the economy, perfecting the political system, building a modern and progressive society, which must be appropriate for work and creation, for building families and educating new generations. [ - After the declaration of independence, as in Moldova’s case, you had to choose among several political directions, particularly East or West. What influenced your choice?] - The entire historic path of Russia, which permanently evolves and already exists for more than 11 centuries, has determined the course of modern Russia’s foreign policy. At its core are the key principles of orienting in many directions, pragmatism, openness, faithful promotion of national interests, without sliding into conflict. The vast territory, our country’s historic orientation towards the Orient and the Occident, trade and traditional cultural connections to states from all over the world, allow Russia to promote a balanced and loyal foreign policy, preserving the continuity and reflecting the unique role, which was formed over centuries, of our country in global affairs and the development of world’s civilization. The heart, the core of this foreign policy is the course towards Eurasian integration, which is based on three countries: Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan, which have created the Customs Union and started working within a Common Economic Space. Meanwhile, such an important direction of our foreign policy as the cooperation with the European Union, which has been a strategic partner of Russia for many years now, does not diminish at all. Together with our European partners, we aim the global strategic objective, i.e. to create a common economic and human space from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. [ - How does your country evaluate the choice made by Moldova in favor of the European integration?] - The matter of the integration paths, participation in different integrating unions is, indubitably, the sovereign choice of the Moldovan people and Government, along with its current leadership. Russia treats this choice with respect. We will seek any kind of collaboration, which are most optimal and suitable for the Russian-Moldovan mutual interaction not to wither, but, on the contrary, to flourish. Our interests lay within strengthening Russian-Moldovan relations, fortifying Moldova’s position among our close, dependable foreign affair partners. In this context, resulting from our geopolitical priorities, namely the strategic course, stated by the Russian government, of intensifying integration processes within the CIS area, we invite Chisinau to participate more actively in the Eurasian integration formats, and are convinced that Moldova’s membership in the CIS does not oppose its European integration course. [ - What load does the relationship between our two countries carry? In certain contexts, Moldova’s relations with different states have different terms, e.g. strategic partnership, close relations, pragmatic relations, etc… - The relations between our peoples, fortified by multi-secular ties of friendship, brotherhood and common religion, may well be called close and spiritual. I really want to believe that the Russian-Moldovan political dialogue, which is characterized by openness and pragmatism, will soon reach the level of true strategic partnership. [Irina Ursu, Info-Prim Neo] {[Info-Prim Neo note:] The “For 21 Years Independent: we, the Former Soviet States” series is intended to include interviews with representatives of diplomatic missions from all former Soviet states. It primarily aims to assess the progress made by our country since Independence, in particular against the experience of other countries which had approximately the same starting line, as well as to discuss the relations between our countries and peoples over these years.}