Taking the Eastern Partnership further

Since the launch of the project, Moldova has managed to become the most rapidly consolidating success story when it comes to democratisation and economic growth. In 2010 Moldova was one of the top three fastest growing economies in Europe.

Unfortunately, Moldova’s parliament has not been able to elect a president for more than two years, and I hope we will overcome this problem soon. But reforms continue, the country works and its European course is unshakeable. Moldova is now a pluralistic democracy with a vibrant media, where all political competition takes part through political, legal, and democratic means. This is no mean achievement.

In June 2010 Moldova also started a dialogue on a visa-free regime and later received an action plan of measures which will allow Moldovan citizens to travel to the EU without visa for short term visits. My firm belief is that Europe will not be united unless its citizens are united. And this is still an unfinished job. The EU’s current visa regime is a huge obstacle for people-to-people contacts, business, trade and ultimately the economic and societal development not just of the EU’s neighbours, but also of the EU as a whole.

There have been a lot of concerns in the EU about the failure of multiculturalism and the challenges of migration. In this context, Moldova is not a challenge for the EU but a partner in managing migration. Our approach to the visa dialogue is not to request bluntly concessions from the EU, but to work together with the EU to address our common concerns.

That is why Moldova and the EU are working now together to implement better instruments which will allow us to address the issues of migration. Moldova is creating an integrated border management system, reforming the ministry of interior and modelling our border control practices and standards on those of the EU. All these reforms are being implemented with the direct contribution and involvement of the EU.

Moldova has also made substantial progress towards launching talks on a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA). In order to develop further Moldova needs more trade, not just aid. Freer trade creates jobs, boosts prosperity and makes modernisation sustainable. This is why the offer of Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade with the EU is so central to the Eastern Partnership.

With 50 percent of its external trade balance, the EU is already Moldova’s biggest trade partner, making us a small but inseparable part of the European economy. But we need freer trade to drastically increase the trade turnover and our hope is to start negotiations with the EU on a DCFTA as soon as possible.

Another project, smaller in scope, but nevertheless of huge importance is the creation of a Common Aviation Area between the EU and Moldova.  We started talks on such an area in July 2011 and hope to complete them soon. This would allow for Moldovan safety standards to increase, and flights between the EU and Moldova to intensify, reducing costs, and benefiting citizens.  

It is important to take stock of what has been achieved, but more importantly we need to design an outlook for the future of the EaP. The partnership has been a success so far, but its success is mainly in launching extremely important initiatives. The hard job of delivering on them is still ahead. I believe that the future success of the Eastern Partnership will depend on several factors. These include a continuous high-level commitment from the EU and neighbouring states, as well as differentiation among the partners.

Speed is also of extreme importance. Moldova does not have another decade to modernise. It only has a few years to make a radical and irreversible break with the past. That is why we are in a hurry to move as fast as possible in relations with the EU and we cannot afford to discuss issues for years and years without rapid advancement. That is why the implementation of the stated objectives of the Eastern Partnership should be drastically accelerated, especially on freer trade and freer circulation of citizens.

It is also, perhaps, time to reflect how we can build on the initial successes of the project to develop it further. So far the partnership has two high-level fora: summits and meetings of foreign ministers. Such meetings are good, but they should only be the top of the pyramid. Beneath them we need to develop a much thicker web of contacts between officials, businesses and societies.

I believe it is important for the EU and its neighbours to launch regular sectoral ministerial meetings - where Eastern Partnership ministers of interior, energy or economy join their EU colleagues for substantial discussions. Such increased dialogue could allow the fulfilment of the potential of the Eastern Partnership in a way that will help strengthen Europe prosperity, security and power in an increasingly multipolar world.

The writer is prime minister of Moldova