Presidency of the Republic of Moldova
Good morning.
I convened today the meeting of the National Committee for European Integration, which will coordinate the efforts of the Republic of Moldova’s authorities on our European path.
European integration is the most important national project of our generation. We set out on this road, guided by people's expectations, in order to offer our citizens, the prospect of a better life at home, in our country.
This project requires the efforts of state institutions, civil society, business community and citizens, who must act together to improve every aspect of life in the Republic of Moldova step by step.
The first meeting of the National Committee for European Integration took place at the end of April. After the meeting, Madam Prime Minister handed over to the EU Ambassador in Chisinau the first part of the accession questionnaire that we completed after submitting the application for EU membership.
Consequently, the Republic of Moldova advanced on the European integration path and received the EU candidate country status on 23 June. This status firmly anchors our country on a clear path towards EU membership.
Also, it provides us more mechanisms for cooperation with European institutions, that will help us to advance steadily towards our chosen objective. Today we know where we are, what is our direction and we are confident that we will be supported along the way.
At today's meeting, the National Committee for European Integration discussed the steps to be taken throughout our European course, and the involvement of civil society, business community and other actors in coordinating the European integration process in a more active manner.
Our next steps focus on meeting the conditionalities regarding the candidate country status indicated in the European Commission's opinion of 17 June.
They cover several areas: justice reform and the fight against corruption, functioning of the rule of law, combating oligarchic influences in the economic, political and media spheres, improvement of electoral legislation, and public administration reform.
The areas mentioned by the European Commission are the ones we strive to work on in order to strengthen state institutions, so that they are able to function effectively in the interest of the citizens.
We discussed all these issues at today's meeting. We paid particular attention to the measures for eliminating oligarchy from public life in Moldova, and to the progress in the fight against corruption, recovering the money stolen from our country, and implementing the justice reform.
We agreed on the steps to be taken by state institutions in each of these areas in order to meet diligently the European Commission's requirements. We have designated the institutions and persons responsible for each action. We have also established the mechanism for coordinating and reporting on the progress in all these sectors.
The achievement of these steps within the agreed timeframe will allow the Republic of Moldova to proceed towards opening the accession negotiations.
We also discussed strengthening the capacity of the central public administration to carry out the expected reforms. We have vulnerabilities in this area, which need to be addressed by further motivating employees, enhancing the competences of the people who will be in charge of these processes, both in the area of implementation and monitoring.
We need young professionals to work for the state and contribute to the European integration of the Republic of Moldova.
The Action Plan including the concrete steps for reform in all these areas will be finalised and adopted by the end of July. This document will be widely consulted with the civil society and other actors involved in the process.
The success of our national goal depends on the ability of the Parliament, Ministries, Government, and public authorities to design, implement and monitor timely reforms in the targeted domains.
Also, our achievements depend on the willingness and ability of the civil society, entrepreneurs, local public authorities and all citizens to support this endeavour for reforms.
We wish to succeed and we must be committed to this great national effort. We must start working immediately and with great dedication.
The National Committee for European Integration will meet regularly to monitor the progress on implementing the agreed actions. The composition of the Commission may be changed depending on the needs that will be identified during the process.
The European integration of the Republic of Moldova is our country programme. Therefore, we must work together to move forward on this path. We have no right to fail. We have a lot of work to do and no time to lose. Good luck to all of us!
