“Moldovan Land to Be Put Up to Auction”

Victor ENI

With his careless remarks, the head of the EU Delegation to Moldova provoked a high-profile public and political scandal. However, even without Mazeiks, it was obvious that in the case of European integration, the issue of selling agricultural land will be among the main ones given the intense interest in it on the part of the European business community

As we know, a brand new scandal has blown up recently, with all the signs of the “black swan” event that comes out of the blue. This time, the head of the EU Delegation in Chisinau, Janis Mazeiks, became the main “newsmaker”, most likely unexpectedly for himself. Because of his reckless comment, a deep crack appeared in the thickly varnished idea of European integration. When asked about the sale of Moldovan lands at one of his recent programs, Mazeiks noted that the European Union has a free capital flow, which means that an EU citizen can buy whatever he needs in any member state. Accordingly, this point will also be discussed during Moldova’s accession negotiations. He immediately said that the sale of land to foreigners would be a “positive factor” for Moldova, as we have a lot of abandoned villages, where economic activity can be boosted with the involvement of foreign owners. It would seem that the ambassador said nothing unusual, as it sounds natural for the average European. But for the Moldovan reality everything looks quite different. Our country is very poor by European standards, and everybody understands that, tentatively speaking, the next day after joining the EU it will be sold off. The remaining citizens will have to leave without waiting for the “economic recovery”. The Baltic States are a vivid example of this, so Mr Mazeiks should know better than anyone else how this can happen. Of course, the opposition and other critics of the authorities did not miss the opportunity to latch onto such an acute topic and broadcast it to the masses. It should be said that the land scandal arose at the most inopportune moment for PAS. The discontent of Moldovan farmers continues to grow, as they’ve never received any sufficient aid from the state, settling only for a closed audience with Maia Sandu. Now, it turns out, the problem will be solved by selling land to foreigners. The situation got traction when both Sandu and Recean were abroad. An awkward situation developed after the premier, commenting on the situation, called all the statements about the land sales “lies”, which means that the EU ambassador is a liar. Recean tried to talk a big game, saying that during the accession negotiations Moldova will definitely ensure the observance of our national interests to prove that documents are not signed blindly. The president also chose to appease by assuring that European integration does not threaten our lands, and they will definitely remain in the hands of our fellow citizens. And in general, private property, the right to it and the right to own land are sacred in the European Union, so no one will allegedly come to confiscate anything, including land, and will not be able to force to sell it. As the expression goes, “Tis hard to credit now, though fresh is its renown”. If they had kept silent, it would have probably looked more convincing. All attempts to assure people that the land would be excluded out of the negotiating agenda failed in just a day when a series of current right-wing norms were published. The latter unequivocally stipulate that, upon accession to the EU, the commercialization of agricultural land will also become part of the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy. This means that, based on the rules there, land must be available for sale to foreigners. The only thing that can be achieved in the negotiation process is a transition period.  Luckily, such cases exist. 7-year restrictions on land turnover were in force in the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia when they joined the EU in 2004. Later they were even partially extended for three years. But Janis Mazeiks is categorical and does not favor any exceptions in the case of Moldova, as they allegedly have a bad effect on the legal system. The impression is that someone in Europe has already drawn a bead on our farmland and will not tolerate any delays. This whole situation with land is rather disappointing and really hopeless. The top-ranking Moldovan officials are not versed in the European legislation and are confused in their statements. And what is much worse is the disorientation of mid-level specialists, who are supposed to prepare this very leadership for the most complicated negotiations. Therefore, the land scandal is only the beginning, and many more original stories await us, unless the authorities, as is their traditional habit, hush up everything, reporting little on the details of communication with Brussels. It is obvious that weak and incompetent negotiators, obsessed with the idea of becoming part of the EU no matter what, will agree to much, if not everything. The main point is that all EU members should sign an accession treaty with us. But there is nothing much to bargain with us – there is no industry, labor resources are practically exhausted, there are no minerals to be found. And fertile land plots are probably the only thing that can still be of interest to European business. We cannot ignore the factor of the Transnistrian conflict and the fact that the land issue has not yet been resolved within the country. Firstly, there is an ongoing dispute between Chisinau and Tiraspol over certain plots of agricultural land. Maybe in the process of European integration it will be solved, but for now it remains open. Secondly, even in case of settlement of the Transnistrian issue, it will take a lot of time to bring the land situation in Transnistria at least into some semblance of conformity with the one on the right bank. In general, the land resources of post-Soviet countries have long been the focus of attention of transnational powers. For instance, they actively lobbied for and eventually achieved liberalization of Ukraine’s land market. The cancellation of the moratorium on its sale, which had been debated for almost two decades, caused great rejection and resistance in Ukrainian society and was fiercely criticized by the opposition. But as a result, in 2020, when land reform became a strict condition for obtaining another loan from the IMF, the Ukrainian authorities finally adopted the relevant law. I will sum up with a quote by the famous American writer Mark Twain: ‘Buy land, they’re not making it anymore’. And it would be a great naivety to take the word of our politicians, who claim to be ready to stand up for the state interests and the remnants of the national patrimony. Unfortunately, in recent years we have seen the opposite: how our strategic assets in the energy sector, the port in Giurgiulesti and other tidbits are passed under the control of our Romanian neighbors and the big foreign capital behind them. In addition, PAS is seeking to change the status of non-privatized state-owned facilities. Thus, they will yield up whatever they are asked for, simply to join the EU. Therefore, there should be no illusions that if the issue of land sale arises, it will be settled without much resistance.