The initiative of holding a local referendum on Moldova’s foreign policy in Gagauzia is not anti-European and is not aimed at imposing options, the region’s Governor Mihail Formuzal says in a statement that was made public on October 3, IPN reports.

Explaining the reasons of his initiative, Formuzal said several protests concerning the external development course of Moldova were held in Gagauzia last week alone. “The people have questions and, as they do not have answers to them, they become more and more dissatisfied. In such a situation, the referendum will represent an appropriate legal method for the people to state their opinion on the matter,” he stated.

According to him, if the inhabitants are not offered this possibility, the indignation will grow and the political situation may be destabilized.  

The Governor also said that the comments of the President and the Premier were hasty, based on distorted facts. “Gagauzia does not intend to tell Moldova what course it should follow in its development. As a component part of Moldova, Gagauzia only wants to take part in the formulation of the state’s foreign policy. If the people want to state their will, I’m obliged to offer them this possibility,” he added.

On October 1, 2013, the Governor proposed holding a referendum on Moldova’s foreign policy. The initiative was criticized by most of the politicians and experts and caused a negative reaction on the part of the central administration. The opponents of this idea said the country’s foreign policy is not within the competence of Gagauzia, while the local referendums can deal only with matters of local importance.