Moldova and Romania Signed Cooperation Priority Area Roadmap

Foreign Affairs and European Integration Minister Nicu Popescu and Romanian Foreign Affairs Minister Ramona Manescu, on a visit to Moldova, at a today’s meeting, tackled the stage of implementation of the priority projects in the sectors of energy, telecommunications, public money, environmental protection, as well as negotiations for cutting the roaming tariffs, moldpres.md reports According to the Foreign Affairs and European Integration Ministry’s (MAEIE) public diplomacy, strategic communication and media interaction service, the two officials discussed subjects on the entire bilateral spectrum, with emphasis put on the need to deepen the key sectors, such as the energy one, through the carrying out of the priority projects. The sides highlighted, with satisfaction, the positive developments in the advancement of the works on construction of the Ungheni-Chisinau segment of the Iasi-Chisinau gas pipeline. Nicu Popescu highly appreciated the multidimensional support provided by Romania to fields related to the dialogue with EU, as well as the Romanian cabinet’s willingness to provide practical assistance for the strengthening of the institutions from Moldova. In this respect, the ministers today signed a roadmap for the priority cooperation sectors between the two countries. While emphasizing the dynamic and substantial cooperation between the diplomatic institutions, Minister Popescu welcomed the presence in Chisinau of the two groups of experts from the Romanian Foreign Affairs Ministry, who will exchange experience and counseling as to the consolidation of MAEIE’s functional capacities, including the modernization and optimization of the consular services. “We have reached a moment when our strategic partnership must use the community of language and culture, in order to speed up the building of a common infrastructure through constructions of bridges, gas pipelines, inter-connections in the communications sector, as only in this way and only from the viewpoint of our bilateral relations, we can firmly and irreversibly anchor Moldova to the European space,” the Moldovan diplomacy head stressed. Minister Ramona Manescu reiterated Romania’s firm resolution to further back the Moldovan authorities’ efforts in the observance of the clear commitment for the European way and consolidation of the bilateral Strategic Partnership for Moldova’s European integration. “The European integration, modernization and strengthening of the state’s structures and administration, the reforms Moldova should carry out, all these will lead to the improvement of the living standards and well-being of the Moldovan citizens,” the Romanian official said. The two ministers also agreed on the need to take additional efforts to overcome the deadlock in the implementation of projects on environmental protection, public money and cross-border cooperation. Point