EU maakt nieuwe afspraken met Moldavië over samenwerking (en)

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The Moldova Action Plan, reinforcing EU-Moldovan relations, was approved today (22 February) at the EU-Moldova Cooperation Council.

"A door is now open, revealing tantalising benefits for Moldova", said External Relations and European Neighbourhood Policy Commissioner, Benita Ferrero-Waldner i.

"Now Moldova must demonstrate its commitment to our shared values, it must take up the challenge and set the pace", she added.

The first step should be the transparency and freedom of the forthcoming elections in the country (6 March), the Commissioner specified.

"Today is a historical day for Moldova, the signature of the Action Plan provides an opportunity to eventually integrate into the EU, as Moldova clearly is a European country", Moldovan Prime Minister Vasile Tarlev replied.

He said reforms were on the way in his country and insisted that "Moldova shall play by the (EU) rules".

Currently, 72 per cent of the population in Moldova support integration into the EU, Mr Tarlev said.

Moldova became an independent state in 1991 and signed the Partnership and Co-operation Agreement with the EU on 28 November 1994 (entered into force on 1 July 1998), providing a framework for EU-Moldova political cooperation.

The Action Plan is an important element in strengthening EU-Moldovan relations within this Agreement. It is also aimed at boosting political and economic reform in Moldova, which currently has one of the lowest incomes per capita in Europe.