President Voronin wants deeper reforms to persuade Brussels to talk over new arrangement with Moldova

Pushing the European reforms in Moldova constitutes the main argument to persuade the Brussels authorities to sooner approve of the mandate to negotiate with Moldova on the new Moldova– EU arrangement, President Vladimir Voronin said at the European Integration National Commission. As Info-Prim Neo reports, the President says the coming two-three months should be used fully to make all “the homework, that is the priorities of the European integration established for 2008.” “By mid-October, we should prove that 50% of the Priorities Plan has successfully been accomplished and we should inform on results in the prestigious Wilton Park in Britain, to take place from October 16 to 19, as the presentation “Moldova – positive changes” will be there,” Voronin underlined. He says, although the European Commission considers the mandate on the talks with Moldova should be approved of after the 2009 parliamentary elections, (provided they a unfolded in a democratic way), the country's goal is to step up the process and to have the mandate approved before the elections. “We don't want to gain political dividends domestically. The question is that during the electoral campaign, at its peak, someone may be tempted to doubt Moldova's European option, may speculate on this topic within European polemics,” he specified. Other paramount elements in speeding up the approval of the mandate for the talks with Moldova, in the opinion of the head of the state, are related to intensifying the dialog between the Moldovan authorities with France, now presiding the EU and, together with Germany, Italy and other countries, has a high prestige within the EU. In Voronin's opinion, although Moldova is a member of Francophonie, and many important French investors work in the country, as Orange, Lafarge, the number of joint projects and actions with France is below any critique. The President also says it is necessary to inform the European Commission, the European experts about the real situation in Moldova. He thinks it is necessary to draft vast info notes for the European structures especially concerning “sensible” issues, as the freedom of media, the dual citizenship, the fight against corruption, the state supporting the local administrations. “When the European experts have objections and they are grounded, we should have an adequate reaction. But when their opinions are grounded on rumors or press interpretations or on materials published on the Internet, we should inform correctly our partners, so that they know the truth,” Vladimir Voronin said.