Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration Nicu Popescu thanked Croatia for the multilateral support offered to the Republic of Moldova so far, noting that Moldova banks on the solidarity of this country in the future, including in overcoming the problems that appeared as a result of Russia’s unjust war against Ukraine. He made statements in a news conference he held together with his Croatian counterpart Gordan Grlić-Radman following the plenary session of the delegations, IPN reports.
Nicu Popescu is in Zagreb on a working visit. In the morning, the minister had a meeting with his Croatian counterpart. The officials discussed the bilateral cooperation agenda, the European integration of Moldova, the reform process in Moldova and the regional situation influenced by Russia’s unjust war against Ukraine.
“The Republic of Moldova is very affected by the war waged by Russia against Ukraine. Our airspace was violated and we witnessed blackouts owing to Russia’s barrages against Ukrainian energy infrastructure. At this moment, Ukraine is being shelled. Civilians die and power outages are experienced in our country,” Nicu Popescu stated in the conference.
He thanked Croatia for the assistance offered in obtaining the EU candidate status and for the support offered in the difficult period through which Moldova goes due to the war.
“In this difficult situation, owing to the EU, including Croatia, the Republic of Moldova continues on the path of reforms and development. I thank you for your assistance in obtaining the EU candidate status and for the supporter fund for the Republic of Moldova, also in the subsequent processes as part of the integration into the EU. We today discussed Croatia’s role in the distribution of energy resources. The Republic of Moldova has increased interest in this regard. The bilateral trade has good dynamics even if the figures are yet relatively small. The tendency is encouraging,” stated Nicu Popescu.
While in Zagreb, Nicu Popescu will have meetings with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Veteran Affairs Tomo Medved, chairman of the Croatian Parliament’s European Affairs Committee Domagoj Hajduković and Deputy Speaker and member of the Foreign Affairs Committee Željko Reiner.