The European Political Community Summit held in Moldova at the beginning of June annoyed the Russian Federation to the maximum, ex-deputy premier for reintegration Vladislav Kulminski stated in a public debate hosted by IPN News Agency.

He said the leaders of the EU member states and of the whole European community convinced themselves that the Republic of Moldova sincerely tends to become part of the European Union. “This summit irritated the Russian Federation to the maximum and this is not a secret. We already got used to the fact that nothing happens in the post-Soviet space without the Russian Federation. And now, the Republic of Moldova, a small country, dared to organize a major EPC summit. This matters considerably. This is an additional proof of the fact that the Republic of Moldova is determined to achieve its ambitions. I think the EU leaders who came to the Republic of Moldova convinced themselves that our country wants to form part of the European Union,” stated Vlad Kulminski.

He noted that the holding of the EPC Summit in Moldova and the obtaining of the EU candidate status were primarily the results of the interpersonal relations between President Maia Sandu and the heads of EU member states.

“The diplomatic service works a lot, including at personal level. I’m sure we wouldn’t have obtained the EU candidate status with a different leadership. The leaders who came here had personal contacts with the country’s administration. This is how diplomacy works. Nothing would have happened without these contacts and this conviction that the authorities of the Republic of Moldova are very determined to join the European Union,” noted Vlad Kulminski.

The former deputy premier for reintegration also said that Moldova faces a series of problems and the country during the past two years went through the most difficult period after the declaring of Independence. The country’s partners helped it to survive in the period.

As to the absence of the Moldovan authorities’ clear position on the Transnistrian region and of relevant statements at the EPC Summit, the expert said the Moldovan government adopted a correct position. “Given the war in Ukraine, the authorities of the Republic of Moldova do not want to stir things up. If we say “A”, we will have to also say “B” and “C”. We will then not be able to say that we changed our mind and no longer want to resolve the Transnistrian dispute. The question is, are we ready for the settlement? We must adopt such an approach when we are ready in terms of security, of the status of the Transnistrian region,” said Vlad Kulminski, noting that the authorities must work out solutions to settle the conflict peacefully and diplomatically and these are two key principles by which Moldova should abide.

The public debate entitled “EPC Summit - diplomatic success for the Republic of Moldova” was staged by IPN in the framework of the project “Support for European Integration by stimulating discussion in the mass media about the European Political Community (EPC) Summit”, which is supported by Soros Foundation Moldova.