Activity of the President on April 29 – May 15, 2006

Decrees

Vladimir Voronin has awarded the Honour Order to Mrs. Heather M. Hodges, U.S. ambassador to Moldova. The order was awarded as a sign of deep gratitude for special contribution to development and deepening of relations between the U.S. and Moldova.

Sittings. Decisions. Declarations

Visit to Vilnius

Moldova’s president has attended the Summit of Heads of State from the Baltic and Black Sea Regions in Vilnius and addressed it. In Vilnius, Voronin had meetings with the secretary-general of the E.U. Council, Javier Solana, high representative of the E.U. for foreign policy and common security; Vice President of the U.S. Richard B. Cheney; Estonian President Arnold Ruutel; Belgian Foreign Minister Carel de Gucht, OSCE chairman-in-office; Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko.

Concerns with wine problem

Moldova’s president has attended a sitting on May 8 that the Government organised with managers of wine producers and exporters, professional association, bodies of central public administration. The talks focussed on situation of the sector after the Russian Federation has restricted the importation of Moldovan alcohol drinks, and internal and external measures taken by authorities to remedy this state of things. Participants proposed to extend and to diversify the markets for Moldovan wines and cognacs.

On May 12, Vladimir Voronin chaired a new sitting which established measures for consolidation and development of vine growing and wine making sector of the country. According to the presidential press service, the chief of state has highlighted the importance of preventing the degradation of this segment of national economy because of restricted exports to the Russian Federation. In particular, the president indicated the need to respect the programme on enlargement of vineyards, to grow quality sorts, to ensure a strict control on domestic spirits market, in a move to protect producers of wines and quality cognacs.

Working visit to Chisinau City Hall

President Voronin accompanied by Prime minister and other decision makers of the executive visited the Chisinau City Hall on May 13. According to press reports, Voronin said that the top leadership of the country will hold sittings at the Chisinau City Hall once a trimester in order to coordinate the activity of the local and central public administrations. The 2006 city development programme of the capital was unveiled at the sitting, while the main objectives for 2006 are: renovation of streets; reconstruction of the memorial complex Eternitate and northern bus station; arrangement of dwelling districts and entertainment areas; lighting of streets. Voronin has proposed to study possibilities to light the headquarters in the central avenue of Chisinau “from sources of economic agents and public institutions located there, installing day and holiday light systems.” The president noted that another 70 million lei will be allocated from the budget for renovation of streets in the Chisinau downtown, but with the condition that the works will be conducted in the warm period of year, by October 1. The sitting discussed a new structure of the Chisinau City Hall and subdivisions of the Municipal Council.

Local councillors, except for some representatives of the communist faction, were not invited at the meeting with the chief of state, so that certain members of opposition factions in the Municipal Council described the meeting as private or “meeting with the municipal executive.” It is worth to indicate in the context the provisions of the Law #123 from March 18, 2003, on local public administration, which says that the “Municipal Council as deliberative authority and mayor-general of the Chisinau municipality as executive authority realise the public administration of the Chisinau municipality.” The law does not stipulate a distinct structure such as the City Hall for the Chisinau municipality.

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