Foreign Affairs on October 16–31, 2007

European integration

8th Meeting of E.U.- Moldova Cooperation Committee

Chisinau hosted the 8^th Meeting of the European Union — Moldova Cooperation Committee on October 25. Hilde Hardeman, head of unit within the DG RELEX of the European Commission, chaired the meeting on behalf of the European Commission and Valeriu Ostalep, deputy minister of foreign affairs and European integration, on behalf of Moldova.

The meeting focussed on the process of implementation of the E.U.-Moldova Action Plan (EUMAP). According to a communication by the Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration (MFAEI), European officials noted that Moldova has achieved important legislative progresses and reiterated the importance of ensuring the enforcement of the adopted legal and normative acts. Thus, E.U. representatives have restated one of the conclusions of the Progress Report on Moldova released by the European Commission on December 4, 2006, and of the June 19 Luxembourg 9^th Meeting of the E.U.-Moldova Cooperation Council. It means that the E.U. did not improve much so far its perception on Moldova’s capacity to effectively implement the legislative achievements.

Following progresses have been noted among others: the active political dialogue between E.U. and Moldova, Moldova’s accession to the Bologna Process; the participation in the ERASMUS-MUNDUS “External Cooperation Window” and TEMPUS III programmes, etc.

Hilde Hardeman has told a news conference after the formal meeting that the European Commission will release its second report assessing the progress in implementing the EUMAP in April 2008 and the E.U. will thus decide on its further relationship with Moldova. In turn, Valeriu Ostalep was confident regarding the progress of relations between the Parties and noted that the name of the new agreement with the E.U. is less important for Moldova, then is if this document will help Moldova to benefit from the EU four fundamental freedoms. This is greater brain wave and option than the former obsessive desire of Chisinau to sign an Association Agreement with the E.U. This demand has started irritating Brussels.

NCEI

The National Commission for European Integration (NCEI) held an ordinary weekly sitting on October 25. The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry, the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources and the Ministry of Industry and Infrastructure reported their achievements aimed at implementing the EUMAP. The few shortcomings signalled at the NCEI sitting are related to the implementation of technical regulations and functioning of food quality testing laboratories.

Like at the precedent sittings, Prime Minister Vasile Tarlev signalled the need of amply reporting the EUMAP implementation process to European institutions.

Visit of EP vice-president to Moldova

European Parliament (EP) Vice-President Miguel Angel Martinez Martinez was on an official visit to Moldova in late October. In Chisinau he has met Moldovan dignitaries including President Vladimir Voronin and Speaker Marian Lupu. The talks focussed on many topics, from the move of Moldovan citizens in the E.U. to the Transdnistrian settlement.

The EP vice-president declared readiness to help extending the interparliamentary dialogue, so that to enhance Moldova’s visibility in Europe and to ease the inclusion of its priorities on the European agenda of talks. In this respect, the Moldovan side was interested to organise working visits of Moldovan parliamentarians to the EP.

Bilateral cooperation

Republic of Moldova — Romania

The Moldovan-Romanian bilateral relations have shown signs of a little relieve in the period concerned. Moldovan Speaker Marian Lupu and Romanian Ambassador to Moldova Filip Teodorescu have agreed during a meeting that the common European values and standards must be the binder of the two countries. Starting from this linking bridge, the Moldovan-Romanian relations could be further developed in a wide range of areas: economic, commercial, transborder cooperation, people-to-people contacts, etc.

However, President Voronin has a bit different opinion on these matters. He hinted during a broadcast aired by TV channel NIT that Moldova is ready to cede and negotiate with Romania only with the purpose to fructify its European aspirations.

Regional cooperation

Republic of Moldova — BSEC

The Turkish capital of Ankara hosted the 17^th Meeting of the Black See Economic Cooperation (BSEC) Foreign Ministers on October 25. Eugenia Kistruga, deputy minister of foreign affairs and European integration, represented Moldova at the meeting. According to the MFAEI press service, representatives of the states participating in the meeting studied the mechanisms needed to enforce the declaration of the June 2007 Istanbul BSEC Summit and approved a BSEC statement. Turkey handed over the BSEC chairmanship to Ukraine at the end of the meeting, after running it for half a year.

Multilateral cooperation

Republic of Moldova — Council of Europe

ECHR judgments

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has passed a record number of judgments — 15 — vs. Moldova in the period concerned, in particular, Tara and Poiata vs. Moldova; Tiberneac Vasile vs. Moldova; Nadulisneac Ion vs. Moldova; Buianovschi vs. Moldova; Deordiev and Deordiev vs. Moldova; Vitan vs. Moldova; Tiberneac vs. Moldova; Marcu vs. Moldova; Cazacu vs. Moldova; Colibaba vs. Moldova; Flux and Samson vs. Moldova; Stici vs. Moldova; Turcan and Turcan vs. Moldova; Deliuchin vs. Moldova, and Lipatnikova and Rudic vs. Moldova. Moldova was sentenced for violation of freedom of expression, rights to protection of property, effective appeal, for torture, illegal detention and non-execution or late execution of judgments^[1].

The ECHR has sentenced Moldova in 91 cases until now. It passed 46 judgments (50.5 percent) vs. Moldova only in 2007(!), the year that authorities declared to be the “last 100 metres” in the EUMAP implementation process^[2].

↑ Moldova will have to pay 78,710 Euros (approximately 1.3 million lei) as damages in the 15 cases.
↑ The ECHR has obliged Moldova to pay approximately 1.53 million Euros (about 25.3 million lei) in damages to applicants until now.

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