Dodon: Ciocoi Is Maia Sandu's Prime Minister, I Wouldn't Have Appointed Him to This Post

PSRM leader Igor Dodon said that Aureliu Ciocoi "is not his prime minister," although he was Dodon's advisor and was appointed foreign minister in the Chicu government proposed by Dodon.   The statement was made a few days after the PSRM leader called on the interim prime minister to be held accountable for signing an agreement in Kiev with his counterparts from Ukraine and Georgia, which sets out the goals of cooperation of several countries associated with the EU, deschide.md writes.  "Ciocoi is not the prime minister of Igor Dodon, Ciocoi was a minister and adviser to Dodon. I did not appoint him as interim prime minister. Ciocoi is the prime minister of Ms. Maia Sandu. It was she who appointed him, although she had a choice. She could also appoint Irina Vlah, a member of the government. Of the 7-8 candidates she had, Maia Sandu appointed Ciocoi. He is a very good specialist in international relations, so I took him as an adviser, but the post of prime minister assumes a broader scope than that of the minister of foreign affairs," Igor Dodon said.  Recently, despite the fact that he does not hold any government positions, Dodon phoned Aureliu Ciocoi and scolded him for signing a memorandum in Kiev. According to Dodon, one of the points of this memorandum is anti-Russian, and Ciocoi had no right to sign this document.  "What has Moldova to do in all that game? It is clear that Ukraine and Georgia have made a strategic decision for themselves to move to NATO, and what is Moldova looking for there? This document is very dangerous. Moldova must cancel it and get out of odd alliances. This is our principled position.  The document talks about expanding cooperation in the field of defense, with particular emphasis on countering hybrid threats. This clearly contradicts the provisions of the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova on the neutral status of the state. Acting Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration Aureliu Ciocoi went beyond his powers by signing this document. I phoned him and told him about it. After the elections, we will cancel this document," Dodon told about the phone call to Ciocoi.