icon

‘We understand very firmly that the European path of the Republic of Moldova passes, first of all, through Bucharest’ - Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration, Cristina Gherasimov, in an interview for the European Institute of Romania

31-10-2024 08:47
542

EIR: At the beginning of this year, you were appointed as Moldova's Chief Negotiator in the EU accession process. Please tell us what is the status of the negotiations and in which areas do you expect faster progress, i.e. which areas will require a longer period of alignment with the EU acquis?

 

Cristina Gherasimov: The Republic of Moldova has entered a new stage in its European path - we formally opened accession negotiations in June this year in Luxembourg, where the first Intergovernmental Conference took place. In July, the bilateral screening procedure began, on the basis of which the European Commission will draw up reports assessing our level of preparedness for the opening of negotiations for each chapter. As you well know from Romania's experience, the accession process is not just a strategic path that we are taking. It also involves a complex technical and administrative effort to fine hundreds of laws and create new institutions, as well as to put in place mechanisms to bring national legislation, standards and institutions up to European standards. We are at the beginning of our road and have a lot of work to do. 

 

Today we are in the process of bilateral screening. Since July, we have already looked at seven chapters. In parallel, we hope to start the actual negotiations, in the first part of 2025, for the first so-called cluster, which contains chapters related to fundamental values.

 

EIR: You have recently stated that the reforms the Republic of Moldova is implementing in order to join the European Union are for the improvement of citizens' lives. How do citizens view this process and what are their main expectations? 

 

Cristina Gherasimov: Indeed, through everything we do today - all the institutional efforts and all the reforms made - we aim to improve the lives of our citizens. We are not doing it because the EU wants us to, but because we need to make the country a place where people like to live and those who are gone want to come back or invest more at home. Citizens see EU membership as an opportunity to have a better life, higher wages, freedom of movement, access to more efficient public services, and this has been seen in the outcome of the referendum on European integration.

 

Attracting investment, creating new well-paid jobs and improving infrastructure in every village and city will obviously lead to higher living standards for citizens. In addition, reducing corruption and strengthening the rule of law – essential for an EU country – will create a favourable environment and encourage people to invest in business, thus convincing them to consider the possibility of creating a future in the country and not abroad. Access to the European single market will also bring new economic opportunities for entrepreneurs and exporters. Here the Growth Plan for the Republic of Moldova, recently announced by Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, will help us explore the economic potential of our country that will lead to economic growth.

 

We continue to have an open dialogue with citizens and to communicate clearly the long-term benefits of the transformation processes that the country is going through, but also what advantages our membership in the European space will bring. It is important, including, to work to convince those who are still skeptical.

 

EIR: Membership of the European Union entails a number of rights and benefits for the Member States. At the same time, each Member State contributes to the development of the European project through its own qualities. What are the most important contributions that the Republic of Moldova would make as a Member State of the European Union?  

 

Cristina Gherasimov: I believe that, first of all, Moldova's membership of the European Union would bring more security to the entire continent. A further expansion would mean a more comprehensive and thus stronger security space in the face of the increasingly complex array of threats we all face.  

 

The Republic of Moldova can also offer more opportunities for European companies, especially those companies already investing in Romania – which would be a win-win for both sides, because we, in turn, want more and more Moldovans to have well-paid jobs at home. We also believe that Moldova can be a pole for reconstruction efforts in southern Ukraine.

 

EIR: Supporting Moldova's European integration efforts is a top priority for Romania's foreign policy. What are the main areas in which the Republic of Moldova would need expertise and support from Romania in the accession process?

 

Cristina Gherasimov: We are grateful to Romania for the support it has given us so far and you should know that, in Chisinau, we understand very well that the European path of the Republic of Moldova passes, above all, through Bucharest. As regards cooperation in the future, given the complexity of the negotiation process with the European Commission and the workload related to the implementation of the acquis, I can say that we would be happy if we could benefit from the support of as many Romanian experts as possible to help the teams within our ministries, agencies and other public institutions engaged in discussions with Brussels.

 

Of course, Romania’s experience both in the pre-accession period and in the first years after becoming an EU Member State is important to us, and when we are able to access European funds as a Member State, it will be essential to learn from colleagues across the Prut how to make the best use of this important opportunity for the development of the Republic of Moldova.

 

European Institute of Romania: Interviuri@IER

Bucharest, October 2024

 

 

Agenda

May 2027

M T W T F S S
 
 
 
 
 
1
 
2
 
3
 
4
 
5
 
6
 
7
 
8
 
9
 
10
 
11
 
12
 
13
 
14
 
15
 
16
 
17
 
18
 
19
 
20
 
21
 
22
 
23
 
24
 
25
 
26
 
27
 
28
 
29
 
30
 
31