Activity of the President on March 29 – April 11, 2006

Decrees

Vladimir Voronin has awarded the Civic Merit medal to certain functionaries working in public administration, Valerian Binzaru, directorate chief of the Finance Ministry; Maria Trischina, chief accountant in the Constitutional Court Secretariat; Nicolae Revetchi, adviser for the Edinet district chief, for long and prodigious activity.

Sittings. Meetings. Declarations

Wine export problem

Vladimir Voronin convoked a special sitting on April 4 that focussed on exportation of wines and other alcohol production to the Russian Federation, interdicted by Russian authorities. Taking part in the meeting were representatives of Parliament, Government, Moldovan ambassadors to the Russian Federation and Ukraine. The chief of state was told that these are no official documents to justify the decision restricting the sale of Moldovan wines on Russian market, with the consumer protection department invoking the presence of pesticides and heavy metals in Moldovan wines, but independent expertises do not confirm these claims. The Moldovan president proposed a civilised and argued dialogue at level of competent governmental structures of Moldova and Russian Federation, organisation of an international independent expertise of all samples of alcohol production exported to the Russian Federation. In addition, Voronin proposed measures to diversify sale markets for Moldovan alcohol production, firstly in Ukraine, and elaboration of some measures to sustain wine makers, including Russian investors who are massively present in Moldova’s wine making industry.

The problem of suspension of wine exports was also discussed during a telephone conversation of Moldovan president and his Georgian counterpart Mikhail Saakashvili, evaluating the future coordinated actions of the two countries, aimed to normalise the state of things. Mikhail Saakashvili has invited Vladimir Voronin on an official visit to Georgia and the Moldovan president accepted the invitation. According to Russian media, Saakashvili left for China on April 10, while Vladimir Voronin is on a private visit to this country. It is presumed that the Moldovan and Georgian leaders discuss with Chinese authorities and businessmen the delivery of Moldovan and Georgian wines, after Russia has restricted their export and trading.

A new reorganisation of the Government’s Apparatus

The president of Moldova has chaired a sitting on optimisation of activity of the Moldovan Government’s Apparatus. According to the chief of state, the 5-year experience has demonstrated that the institute of adviser is the best way to organise the activity of the chief of state’s administration, describing the reorganisation of the Government’s Apparatus after the same model as opportune. Reorganisations in the Government’s Apparatus shall contribute to a better direction of administration, introduction of new governing principles and methods, insurance of a deeper interaction between presidential advisers and advisers of prime minister. Voronin sought a strict discipline and quality of issued documents and orders, maintenance of control and permanent record of execution of governmental decisions (April 5, 2006). We note in this regard that the reorganisation of the Government’s Apparatus is not stipulated express by strategy on local public administration reform, this document empowering the Government’s Apparatus to take most of measures included in the plan on implementation of reform strategy. The Government’s Apparatus was modified and reorganised more than once, followed by personnel cuts, while the most important are:

passage from the post of “state minister” to the post of “director of the State Chancellery” (1999);
reorganisation of the “State Chancellery” into “Apparatus of the Government” (2004);
merger of some subdivisions of the Government’s Apparatus (2005).

Experts of public administration consider that the organisation of the Government’s Apparatus after the model of the presidential apparatus is not an efficient measure because the Presidency does not draft normative documents, analyses and other works that specialised structures in the Government’s Apparatus perform, while competences of advisers for prime minister cannot be extended to coordination of activity of some ministries and central authorities and presidential advisers participate in these relations due to authority and permanent ties with the chief of state. The relying of activity of the Government’s Apparatus on advisers for prime minister produces confusions (the apparatus is of the Government, not of the prime minister, while presidential advisers are of president) and would direct to an excessive politicising of this structure, instability of posts (under the law on public service, the investiture of new first-ranking officials leads to dismissal of advisers).

Visit to the Academy of Sciences

According to the presidential press service, Vladimir Voronin has visited the Moldovan Academy of Sciences with the purpose to collect facts “regarding the stage of implementation of his initiatives on renovation and modernisation of the supreme scientific forum of Moldova.” Headquarters which are being renovated and completely reconstructed were visited with the purpose to locate new scientific libraries of ASM. The chief of state demanded the renovation and consolidation of the Institute for Protection of Plants and Ecological Agriculture, which plays a decisive role in developing ecological agricultural production.

Meeting with E.U. representative

Vladimir Voronin has described the European Union’s support for Moldova’s territorial integrity and national sovereignty as decisive at a meeting with Cesare De Montis, head of the European Commission Delegation in Chisinau. According to the chief of state, measures such as participation of the E.U. as observer of the negotiation process, creation of the Border Assistance Mission to Moldova and Ukraine, firm support for implementation of a legal customs regime for exportation of goods from the Transnistrian region, and others are essential elements for Moldova’s reintegration. The sides have analysed the stage of implementation of the E.U.-Moldova Action Plan, with the E.U. ambassador expressing hope that the April 10–11 sitting of the Moldova-E.U. Cooperation Council will appreciated the positive results.

Visit of Latvia’s President

Within a news conference after talks between presidents of Latvia and Moldova, Vladimir Voronin has thanked the Latvian authorities for supporting the process of adjustment of Moldova’s national legislation to the E.U. standards, mentioning that the integration in the E.U. is an unchanging national option and strategy, this being the only way to develop Moldova and to transform it into a democratic state like other European countries. Vaira Vike Freiberga appreciated Moldova’s European choice, but warned that the chosen way is not easy, but the results deserve the efforts.

Meeting with chairman of the Party of Communists of Kyrgyzstan

The president of Moldova has received Ishak Masoliev, chairman of the Party of Communists from Kyrgyzstan, lawmaker in the Kyrgyz Parliament. According to the presidential press service, Ishak Masoliev expressed interest for democratic reforms promoted by Moldova’s Party of Communists, especially as regards the rights of opposition parties, as well as towards experience of cooperation of the Moldovan authorities with the Council of Europe. Vladimir Voronin has expressed interest for particularities of development of Kyrgyzstan, especially after major political events that happened in this country early last year.

Meeting with leader of the Yisrael Beytenu Party

Avigdor Liberman, Moldovan-born chairman of the party which ranked the 4th place at the elections in the Israeli Knesset, has visited Chisinau some days after the parliamentary elections in Israel. Meetings of Liberman focussed on economic, political and cultural cooperation between both countries and contribution of businessmen, representatives of the Moldovan Diaspora in Israel and of the Jewish community in Moldova to these fields. Under understandings, investment projects on agriculture and transportation industry of Moldova will be implemented soon.

Interview for Nezavisiamaya Gazeta

The Russian newspaper Nezavisiamaya Gazeta published an interview with the Moldovan president in its April 7, 2006 issue concerning the Moldovan-Russian relations, problems of interior and foreign policy of Moldova:

the Moldovan authorities are concerned to restore monuments of Russian culture (Museum House A. Pushkin, Serpeni Memorial, Memorial of Victory in Chisinau, etc);
the Russian language is protected by law in Moldova, it is a language of interethnic communication, all official documents are translated into Russian, the Parliament has sanctioned the status of polyethnic state of Moldova;
the European integration vector of foreign policy does not damage Russia, which is an important part of Europe, while President Putin is a European president who returns the European mission of this country for Russia;
the acting governance does not have phobias for NATO, but Moldova does not intend to join this structure;
the Moldovan authorities agree with the 1997 Transnistrian settlement Memorandum;
guarantees of properties in the Transnistrian region may be confirmed at bilateral Moldovan-Russian and Moldovan-Ukrainian level;
the interdictions on Moldovan wine exports to Russia are forms of “political education” that determine adequate measures for diversification of export. Moldova’s wines will return to the Russian market, but in a higher price section, with a guaranteed European quality;
the official visit of Moldova’s president to the Russian Federation is being prepared, but this visit shall result with important and irrevocable decisions.

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