The Presidents of the European Council, António Costa, of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and of Moldova, Maia Sandu, will meet in Brussels on Monday 22 June for the second EU-Moldova Summit. According to a European source, this summit will be “forward-looking” and will seek “to give new impetus to the partnership”.
The summit comes a week after Chișinău opened its first cluster of accession negotiation chapters (see EUROPE 13889/29), after more than two years of waiting. The meeting should therefore provide an opportunity to take stock of the reforms already undertaken and to call on Moldova to continue implementing its reforms, while the other five clusters of chapters could be opened soon.
Moldova’s gradual integration should be at the centre of discussions. According to a senior official, the country could soon join Erasmus + and young Moldovans could benefit from ‘DiscoverEU’. In addition, a new research framework agreement will be signed at the Summit. According to the Council, this non-binding agreement aims to establish cooperation in a number of research areas linked to smart specialisation strategies and innovation policies.
There could also be an update on the growth plan worth €1.9 billion. “Moldova is acting very quickly. Of the 30 expected reforms, 28 (that is 93%) have already been implemented, making Moldova the best-performing country in terms of the growth plan”, a European source recalled. According to the source, if the government continues along this path, the country could receive around €500 million by the end of the year.
The two sides could also discuss strengthening Moldova’s security and defence, a country with which the EU has a security and defence partnership. Moldova is the 2nd beneficiary of the European Peace Facility in terms of amount, and the High Representative, Kaja Kallas, proposed in May raising EU support to €120 million per year (see EUROPE 13865/4). As the country faces attempts at Russian interference, the fight against hybrid threats and EU support for the country, notably through its partnership mission, could be discussed.
The joint declaration expected to be adopted should underline the main elements of cooperation between the EU and Moldova, such as the rule of law, increased trade and investment, energy, transport and the fight against hybrid threats. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)