The Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk said the European Commission’s recommendation to open accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova represents acknowledgment of the fact that the Ukrainians and Moldovans belong to the European family. “We are convinced that both Ukraine and Moldova should undoubtedly be members of the European Union,” the Ukrainian official stated in his speech in Parliament in Chisinau, IPN reports.
Ruslan Stefanchuk expressed his gratitude for the support offered by the Republic of Moldova to the people of Ukraine. “We felt and continue to feel the support of Moldova - a small country with a big heart. I’m bowing low before you and sincerely thank the people of Moldova for opening the border and the homes to tens of thousands of Ukrainian woman and children, who fled from the Russian terror, from the very first day of war,” said the Ukrainian official.
He welcomed the firm condemnation of Russia’s war against Ukraine and of the Holodomor by the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova. “I thank you for condemning the war crimes and the crimes against humanity committed by the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine and, especially, for the adoption, in November 2022, of an important statement on the condemnation of the Holodomor of 1932-1932 as genocide of the Ukrainian people. This points to solidarity with the Ukrainian people who defend the peace and freedom both of the European continent and of the Republic of Moldova,” stated Ruslan Stefanchuk.
For his part, Moldova’s Parliament Speaker Igor Grosu, in the name of the citizens of the Republic of Moldova, expressed gratitude for the sacrifice made by the people of Ukraine for everyone’s freedom. He repeatedly condemned the war that has been waged by Russia on Ukraine for almost two years, noting that the Republic of Moldova will continue standing by the Ukrainians and that both Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova chose to form part of the free, democratic and prosperous world where the human life and the respect for human dignity are supreme values, while the integration into the EU is irreversible.
According to Igor Grosu, both the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine are determined to do their homework and cover the European path as history teaches us that the windows of opportunity do not stay open long and victory is possible only through unity.
