Ciocoi: We Will Prioritize Dialogue with the Alliance

The Moldovan authorities are interested in continuing the political dialogue and in practical cooperation with the North Atlantic Alliance in areas of interest. In particular, Chisinau is ready to identify priority areas for cooperation with the Alliance in 2020-2022 in the framework of the new Individual Action Plan in the framework of the partnership. This stated Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration Aureliu Ciocoi during the meeting in Brussels with NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana, ipn.md reports According to the MFAEI, during the meeting Mircea Geoana noted that the North Atlantic Alliance supports partnership with the Republic of Moldova and “sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova and respects the country's neutral status”. The NATO official praised Moldova’s contribution to enhancing security in Europe by participating in the KFOR peacekeeping operation in Kosovo. The readiness of the alliance was also expressed to continue supporting the processes of reform and modernization of the Republic of Moldova based on requests from the Moldovan authorities. The meeting also touched upon other issues regarding the priorities on the Moldova-NATO cooperation agenda, including the development of a new Individual Partnership Action Plan (IPAP), the introduction of  NATO assistance package to strengthen the defense capability and security of the Republic of Moldova, and the implementation of projects within the framework of the Science for Peace and Security Program, cooperation in combating new security threats and promotion of state diplomacy activities.