The Romanian Senate Speaker pays visit to Chisinau

Bucharest will continue to support Chisinau in its bid to join the EU, said the Romanian Senate Speaker.

Leyla Cheamil, 04.03.2024, 13:50

One day, Romania and the Republic of Moldova will be together in the great European family. This is the message conveyed, in Chisinau, by the Speaker of the Bucharest Senate, Nicolae Ciucă. He paid a visit to the neighboring, ex-Soviet, mostly Romanian-speaking country where he met with the Moldovan President, Maia Sandu and with the head of Parliament, Igor Grosu. “The citizens of the Republic of Moldova already know that Romania is their most reliable partner. My thoughts also go to the hundreds of thousands of Moldovan citizens who live in Romania and who are worried about their families across the Prut River”, said Nicolae Ciucă.

He pointed out that the place of the Republic of Moldova is in the European Union, and that Romania remains its main partner in this endeavor.  “I am convinced that, as the institutions of the Republic of Moldova implement the necessary reforms in the key areas, the European idea will become more concrete, more tangible, more desired, by the society and by the entire political class”, Ciucă also said. He emphasized that the Republic of Moldova is an independent and sovereign country and the only one that can decide its own fate.

On the other hand, the Romanian official pointed out at the meeting in Chisinau with President Maia Sandu, that the hybrid war started by Moscow did not reach its objectives in Moldova, which is a victory and very good news in Bucharest as well.   In turn, Maia Sandu said that Romania is the most important political and economic partner of the Republic of Moldova. She emphasized the importance of continuing energy interconnection projects, including through the Suceava-Bălţi (north) overhead power line, which will increase the energy independence of her country. At the same time, the two officials also discussed the projects to modernize and build several bridges over the Prut River, which will ease cross-border traffic, intensify economic cooperation and bring Moldova even closer to Romania and the European Union. Maia Sandu thanked for the unconditional support provided by Romania over time, noting that the Chisinau authorities count a lot on Romania’s expertise and contribution in the European integration process.

At the meeting with the head of the Moldovan Parliament, Igor Grosu, Nicolae Ciucă discussed topics related to the reform agenda, inter-parliamentary cooperation, cooperation in the energy field and the acceleration of infrastructure projects. The Romanian official mentioned, on this occasion, that Romania supplies a part of the gas consumption of the neighboring state. “We will continue to support the Republic of Moldova in this respect, given the energy blackmail that the Russian Federation uses as a weapon in the relationship with the rest of Europe”, Ciucă added. The two presidents also discussed ways of expanding cooperation in the economic and investment fields. Also, the Romanian official conveyed a message of solidarity and support in the particularly complicated security context for the Republic of Moldova.

(EE)