Sandu: Experiments with the Country Are in the Past

President Maia Sandu said that the experiments with the country are in the past, Moldova has chosen the European model of development, which it will follow. She said this on Tuesday at the opening of the annual European Integration Forum organized by the Friedrich Ebert Foundation and the Foreign Policy Association under the slogan “Toward Moldova’s European Future”, infotag.md reports. According to the head of state, during the 30-year-long transition period, the authorities carried out various experiments that failed. “And along with them failed the formation of strong state institutions, consolidation of the economy and social cohesion. A weak state led to the spread of the phenomenon of corruption, which undermined the hopes of millions of Moldovans to build a prosperous future. Our European aspirations have fallen victim to the interests of corrupt politicians,” she said. The President pointed out that citizens realized that European slogans mean nothing if they are carried by politicians who do not share European values. Therefore, in the last elections, people voted for strong state institutions and fair justice. “The election results showed that the priorities of citizens coincide with the provisions of the Association Agreement, which should be the foundation for the internal transformation of the country,” the President said, reiterating that the European aspirations of citizens were undermined by the past authorities. According to her, because of this, the implementation of the Association Agreement is at a low level, and the task of the authorities is to make up for the lost time and advance in the implementation of obligations to the EU. The President called the European Union Moldova’s most important external partner. She stressed that the restoration of dialogue with Brussels allowed Moldova to receive significant assistance to overcome the pandemic crisis and restore the economy. “Following the Association Council meeting in October, we agreed to advance the agenda with the EU, including at the level of foreign policy and security dialogue,” Sandu said. She believes that Moldova has chosen the European model of development, which implies high living standards, strong institutions, respect for the law and fair justice.