Brussels, 19/02/2015 (Agence Europe) - During the evening of Wednesday 18 February, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini and European Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn congratulated Moldova's Prime Minister Chiril Gaburici on his appointment and on the formation of the new government.
“Looking forward” to continuing the cooperation between the EU and the Republic of Moldova and swiftly implementing the EU-Moldova association agreement, Mogherini and Hahn said that a “stable government with a genuine reform agenda will be crucial to this end”. “We trust that the new government will step up its efforts on key reforms, especially in the justice and financial sectors and on fighting corruption (…) Moreover, continuing and intensifying a broad policy that includes all sectors of the society will be essential”, they stated in their press release.
Mogherini and Hahn reiterated the EU's support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova with a special status for Transnistria. They “strongly” encouraged intensifying efforts towards reaching a comprehensive, peaceful settlement of the Transnistrian conflict.
On Wednesday 18 February, the Moldovan Parliament approved the choice of 38-year-old businessman, Chiril Gaburici, for the post of prime minister - by 60 out of 101 votes. Before the vote, Gaburici announced that European integration and respecting the agreements with the EU would be his government's priorities. Last week, the Moldovan Parliament refused to agree a second mandate for former prime minister Iurie Leanca. (Camille-Cerise Gessant)