Opmerkingen Van Rompuy na zijn ontmoeting met premier van Moldavië (en)

EUROPEAN COUNCIL THE PRESIDT

Brussels, 15 November 2013 EUCO

PRESSE 479 PR PCE 209

Remarks by President of the European Council

Herman Van Rompuy i after his meeting with

Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova Iurie Leanca

It is a pleasure to welcome Prime Minister Leanca of the Republic of Moldova here today. We have met many times before in his former capacity as Foreign Minister

Today’s visit intervenes two weeks before the Eastern Partnership summit in Vilnius. We have therefore devoted an important part of our discussion to evaluate progress and challenges. I thanked Prime Minister Leanca for Moldova's constructive role in the Eastern Partnership, which has proved to be an efficient framework for advancing our bilateral relations. I reiterated the European Union’s on-going commitment to initial the Association Agreement in Vilnius, and the European Union's readiness to prepare for its signature by the autumn of 2014. I hope that its initialling will send a strong and positive message

I underlined that the current political stability in Chisinau offers a new opportunity to advance indispensable reforms and focus on concrete deliverables for the Moldovan population. It is important to communicate more to the citizens - on both sides of the Nistru River - about the benefits of EU-Moldova cooperation and the future Association Agreement. Their impact is, and will be, positive and beneficial to all: stronger human rights protection, guarantees for minorities, closer and more people-to-people contacts, more economic growth and more jobs

As regards visas, I re-affirmed the European Union's commitment to the shared objective of visa-free travel in due course, now that Moldova has fulfilled all the benchmarks of the visa liberalisation action plan

We also discussed Moldova's challenges and the need to address the root causes of previous political instability in order for your country, Mister Prime Minister, to implement properly the Association Agreement after its signature next year. We agreed that judicial reform, the fight against corruption and improvement of the business climate were of the essence

Finally, I re-affirmed the Union's unwavering support to Moldova's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and a peaceful settlement of the Transnistrian conflict based on a special status for "Transnistria" in a re-united Moldova. I invited Prime Minister Leanca to take forward the constructive spirit of his recent meetings with the leadership of Transnistria, to work together to defuse undue tensions on the ground and deliver tangible results to the people. The European Union stands ready, more than ever, to support these efforts

Let me once again thank Prime Minister Leanca for his visit and for his efforts to advance the Association Agreement with the European Union. Moldova's continuous efforts to implement European values make it an important partner for the European Union and an Eastern Partnership front-runner. I look forward to meeting the Prime Minister soon again in Vilnius

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