Alesandru Munteanu
“I am old enough to remember the transformation of Europe over the last 30-40 years. I would probably start with the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the Revolution in Romania a few months later, which I witnessed. And then obviously the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the whole subsequent transformation of Europe. I was in Croatia because at one point I was associated with the Association and Stability Treaty, May 1, 2004. …If you come to the present, we are facing a different situation. But in any case, I believe that the European project – and because I went through all these years – is probably the most successful geopolitical project since the creation of the United States of America. So I am a big supporter of the European Union now,” the Prime Minister said.
At the EU Enlargement Forum organized by Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos, the Moldovan prime minister said that Moldova is facing new challenges:
“As a Moldovan citizen, I am very happy about the reaction of our citizens to new challenges, because obviously the whole world has changed, starting in 2015 with the annexation of Crimea and then with a full-scale war in 2022. And of course, for Moldova, which is right on the doorstep of that war, it has created a lot of challenges. But I’m proud of the citizens of Moldova who three times voted unequivocally in favor of joining the European Union, despite all the interference and …hundreds of millions spent by evil forces to distract and change the will of the people to buy votes. Nevertheless, during the parliamentary elections, the presidential elections and the referendum, the citizens of Moldova made it clear that they want to be part of the EU.”
The prime minister said that the EU integration process is based on merit, and the war at Moldova’s doorstep is not an excuse for suspending the reforms.
“In Moldova’s case, we are going through all kinds of reforms. I think the war at our doorstep is not an excuse not to do judicial reform, not to fight corruption or not to develop the economy. And we obviously have to do all these things simultaneously, in parallel, but always keep in mind that we have a very unpredictable neighbor, to put it mildly. And this neighbor will not disappear overnight. This is not a fairy tale with a magic wand where the whole nightmare will disappear. It’s going to continue. And we need a policy, we need a plan how to counteract all these malicious actions,” Alexandru Munteanu said in Brussels.
Moldovan Prime Minister is making an official visit to Brussels to discuss the government’s priorities and ways to accelerate reforms with EU support. During the visit, he will also address the European Business Summit and hold meetings with the head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, as well as with other European leaders and representatives of the diaspora. Munteanu emphasized three key messages: Moldova is actively transforming itself into a European state, has a clear plan for sustainable economic growth and aspires to become a reliable actor in regional security.
