The Political Council of the Democratic Party (PD) and the Standing Bureau of the Social-Liberal Party (PSL) have announced a potential merger of the parties, which will convene their national assemblies on December 15 to make preparations for the Merger Congress. This intention was voiced at a news conference on Wednesday by the leaders of the two parties. PD leader Dumitru Diacov stated that this decision comes in response to the calls of the electorate that wants the strengthening of existing parties rather than the appearance of new ones. PSL leader Oleg Serebrian sees this merger as a unique project. He reminded that both parties were once members of the Democratic Moldova Bloc. According to him, while alliances are not always the right option, a strong partnership is the best solution in terms of efficiency. It has been agreed that the merging parties will embrace the centrist doctrine. The new party will advocate for the building of an independent and unitary state, and for Moldova’s plenary integration into the EU. In what concerns the foreign policy, the party will promote the idea of establishing a special relationship with Romania, which would facilitate the integration process for Moldova. In addition, the new party will plead for the establishment of a relationship based on cooperation, understanding and partnership with Russia and Ukraine, as well as for fostering the development of privileged relations with the Western democracies. As concerns the economy, the party will promote the idea of lowering the income tax levied on salary earners and of introducing a luxury tax. The party will also plead for the promotion of policies for attracting investment. The parties have agreed that the merger will be done with the Democratic Party serving as foundation. The date of the Merger Congress as well as the technical principles will be established on December 15. In February 2006 Oleg Serebrian announced PSL’s intention to unify with the parties sharing the liberal principles. This autumn Serebrian spoke of the need to consolidate the political centre. Shortly after that, Diacov announced publicly that he supports such an idea, and at the beginning of this month the three Social-Liberal MPs decided to join the Democratic group in the Parliament.