The second EU-Moldova Forum at the DGAP featured members of government and EU Commissar Stefan Füle
Moldova’s consistent reform policies have received praise from all sides. Emily Haber, state secretary at the German Foreign Office, highlighted the country’s Road Map, which it signed with the EU. The agreement includes steps toward visa liberalization, negotiations for a comprehensive free trade agreement, economic modernization, measures to combat corruption, and the introduction of new opportunities for citizen participation. Uta Böllhoff, department head at the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, announced an extensive increase in German financial aid for Moldova.
Stefan Füle said that Moldova is approaching the reforms with a diligence and speed that have not been seen before. As the Eastern Partnership’s “most dependable model student,” Moldova now leads the way in the region. In this context, he referred to Article 49 of the EU Treaty, which grants every European country the right to apply for EU membership if they comply with European values and norms. Even though the EU is currently combating the debt crisis and many see it as incapable of enlargement at the moment, the Union still has vital security and economic interests in integrating its eastern neighbor states.
Moldova’s pragmatic foreign policy also received recognition. The country has sought a balance between harmonization with the EU and cooperation with Russia, which seeks to find a solution to the conflict in Transnistria.
The DGAP hosted the EU-Moldova Forum, a joint project organized by the German-Moldovan Forum (Deutsch-Moldauisches Forum e.V.), the Institute for Eastern Studies in Warsaw (Fundacja Instytut Studiów Wschodnich), and the Council on Foreign Relations in Chisinau (Asociaţia pentru Politică externă). It took place on October 22 and 23, 2012, and was held under the patronage of German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle and his Moldovan colleague Iurie Leanca. The conference continued the work of the first EU-Moldova Forum, which took place in Chisinau in March 2011.
