The President of Moldova, Maia Sandu, said on Tuesday 28 March that her country, which has been a candidate for EU membership since June 2022, should be able to open accession negotiations “as soon as possible”.
“We aim to open negotiations as soon as possible. To this end, we are implementing the European Commission’s recommendations and transposing European legislation at an accelerated pace”, she stressed at a press conference in Chisinau with the President of the European Council, Charles Michel. In her view, European integration is “the only way to ensure Moldova’s survival as a free and prosperous country, the only chance for Moldovans to live in freedom, peace and well-being in their own land”.
Mr Michel explained that he wanted to put the issue of opening accession negotiations on the agenda of the European Council by the end of the year, hoping that a positive decision would be possible.
Welcoming the “considerable efforts” already made in terms of reforms, he said it was important to implement the nine conditions of the European Commission’s opinion, citing comprehensive reform of the judiciary, the fight against corruption and the depoliticisation of state institutions. “We are counting on the EU’s support to sustain the economy, especially the small and medium-sized enterprise sector”, Ms Sandu said.
The President of the European Council also strongly condemned attempts to destabilise the country by “Russia and its proxies”, using “energy, cyberattacks, organising demonstrations”. “We have full confidence in the government’s ability to deal with all these threats”, he said, adding that the EU stood by Moldova. On 23 March, the European Council asked the European Commission to present a support programme for Moldova before the summer (see EUROPE 13147/3).
The two Presidents also discussed the European Political Community, whose second summit will be hosted by Moldova on 1 June. According to Ms Sandu, the summit should focus on issues of peace and security, energy resilience and climate action as well as interconnections in Europe for a better connected and more stable continent. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)