The accession negotiations to the European Union could start this year. This is what the Vice-President of the Parliament, Mihai Popșoi, says. According to him, the meeting of the EU-Republic of Moldova Association Council is a good opportunity for the European partners to assess the state of things in the Republic of Moldova, but also to establish new priorities.
And Deputy Prime Minister Nicu Popescu says that the start of accession negotiations is a priority for the government in Chisinau, and this depends on the speed with which the Republic of Moldova will succeed in implementing the reforms agreed with the European Union, notes ipn.md.
“The Association Council is an extremely important moment, in which the candidate country Republic of Moldova and the European Union compare their successes and shortcomings. We want the achievements we have had in the last year, as well as the plans we have for 2023, to be evaluated as best as possible by our European partners, so that the accession negotiations can start this year”, said Mihai Popșoi in within the program “In Depth” from ProTV Chisinau.
Today, in Brussels, the 7th meeting of the EU-Republic of Moldova Association Council is taking place. For the first time, the Republic of Moldova is present at this event as a candidate state for joining the European Union.
FOR THE MOST IMPORTANT NEWS, SUBSCRIBE TO OUR TELEGRAM CHANNEL!
“It is possible to start the negotiations by the end of the year, given that the list of conditions that the Republic of Moldova must fulfill is not so long. But we have to get used to the coming years, gradually, that this relationship will become less spectacular, the process will enter into a working regime. There will be fewer opportunities to present extraordinary achievements, but there will be a lot of red tape. This will be the new interaction regime and it is natural,” said Watchdog expert Valeriu Paşa.
While in Brussels, Deputy Prime Minister Nicu Popescu mentioned during a telephone intervention that the Republic of Moldova will start accession negotiations when it implements the necessary reforms and succeeds in convincing the member states that it deserves to be part of the EU bloc.
“At the Association Council we review the things that have been done so far and what we can do together with the European Union in the future in the fields of: energy, agriculture, transport, trade. Decisions on joining the European Union or opening negotiations depend on our ability to implement the necessary reforms. But there is still a need for each EU member state to be convinced of this and to support the opening of negotiations”, said Deputy Prime Minister Nicu Popescu.
The EU-Republic of Moldova Association Council meeting takes place today, February 7, in Brussels and is chaired by Prime Minister Natalia Gavriliţa and the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, vice-president of the European Commission.