Leaders of France, Germany and Poland travelled to Moldova on August 27 to mark the country\u2019s 34th anniversary of independence, pledging firm support for its European Union bid as the ex-Soviet republic braces for elections overshadowed by fears of Russian interference.<\/p>\n
French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stood alongside Moldovan President Maia Sandu in central Chi\u0219in\u0103u, in a show of support for the country’s European path.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe presence of European leaders on our national day represents a strong signal of friendship and respect for our people, but also a clear confirmation that the European path of the Republic of Moldova is not a distant dream, but a common project,\u201d Sandu said in a statement published by the Moldovan presidency.<\/p>\n
Sandu first came to power promising to anchor her country in the West. She said Moldova\u2019s choice was made starker by Russia\u2019s invasion of neighbouring Ukraine.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe merciless war that Russia wages against Ukraine shows us daily that Europe means freedom and peace, whilst Putin\u2019s Russia means war and death,\u201d she said. \u201cOur independence and future are in our hands and we have no right to lose them.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a lengthy independence day address, Sandu cast Moldova\u2019s trajectory as part of Europe\u2019s postwar peace project. \u201cAlmost 75 years ago, after the most destructive war in history, the visionary leaders of France and Germany had the courage to build together a united Europe, where former rivals became partners. Somewhat later, Poland, after decades of dictatorship, showed that freedom and democracy can be reborn and strengthen Europe. Today, Moldova is following in the footsteps of this history.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sandu said her government had consolidated institutions, bolstered energy security, and gained access to the EU single market, where \u201cour producers find stability, clear rules and real opportunities, not embargoes and blackmail\u201d. But she warned of \u201cinterference in our elections, illegal funding from abroad, disinformation campaigns, cyberattacks, paid protests, the use of the church and online platforms for anti-European messages, the sabotage of the diaspora vote, the propagation of hatred between communities.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPart of the European family”<\/strong><\/p>\n Macron, who has repeatedly sought to strengthen ties with Eastern Europe, said Moldova\u2019s orientation was clear. \u201cMoldova is part of the European family through the values it defends,\u201d he told a joint news conference. \u201cTogether we want to send a message of friendship, solidarity and trust in our common future.\u201d<\/p>\n On social media, Macron posted: \u201cToday in Chi\u0219in\u0103u, we celebrate Moldova’s Independence Day, marking the country’s entry into the era of sovereignty and regained freedom. A common horizon unites us: Europe, friendship, solidarity and confidence in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n The French presidency said the Weimar Triangle leaders \u2013 France, Germany and Poland \u2013 were also reaffirming \u201ctheir full support for Moldova\u2019s security, sovereignty and European path.\u201d<\/p>\n Tusk cast Moldova\u2019s EU ambitions as integral to the bloc\u2019s own security. \u201cThere is no secure EU, no secure Poland, no secure France, and no secure Germany \u2014 without an independent and secure Moldova,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cEurope will be stronger with Moldova \u2013 your resilience, your values and your voice will enrich our Union,\u201d he added. \u201cMoldova is exactly the kind of country we want in the European Union. You are very ambitious and courageous, but also rich in tradition, very hardworking, and always ready to defend what is right.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe door to the EU is open\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n Moldova applied for EU membership alongside Ukraine in 2022. Since then, it has progressed rapidly, outpacing some aspiring members from the Western Balkans. The European council decided to open accession negotiations in December 2023, and Moldova\u2019s first intergovernmental conference was held in June 2023.\u00a0<\/p>\n Merz said that Chi\u0219in\u0103u\u2019s reforms were laying the groundwork for accession. \u201cThe door to the European Union is open. You are wholeheartedly welcome in this European Union,\u201d he said, according to a German government statement.<\/p>\n \u201cIt cannot be taken for granted that Moldova has chosen to join the European Union on its own. Things could have turned out very differently. Russia\u2019s cruel war against Ukraine reminds us of that every day,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n The German leader pledged to keep sending experts to support Moldova\u2019s reform agenda and said his country stood \u201cby Moldova to preserve its freedom and sovereignty.\u201d He called for \u201ca lasting peace\u201d in the region but insisted it must not come at the price of \u201cUkraine\u2019s capitulation.\u201d<\/p>\n Crucial elections ahead<\/strong><\/p>\n Moldova, a country of 2.5mn people situated between Ukraine and EU member Romania, declared independence from Moscow in 1991 but has long been divided between pro-European and pro-Russian political forces. Part of its territory is controlled by Russia-backed separatists.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sandu\u2019s Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) secured a victory in last year\u2019s referendum to enshrine EU membership in the constitution, followed by her re-election to a second term.\u00a0<\/p>\n However, opinion polls suggest PAS could lose its parliamentary majority<\/a> in the elections next month, which both Brussels and Chi\u0219in\u0103u warn could be targeted by Moscow through propaganda and covert financing<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Leaders of France, Germany and Poland travelled to Moldova on August 27 to mark the country\u2019s 34th anniversary…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":379665,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5174],"tags":[2000,10247,299,5187,36,1824,13491,770],"class_list":{"0":"post-379664","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-eu","8":"tag-eu","9":"tag-eu-enlargement","10":"tag-europe","11":"tag-european","12":"tag-france","13":"tag-germany","14":"tag-moldova","15":"tag-poland"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115105038674174324","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379664","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=379664"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379664\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/379665"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=379664"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=379664"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=379664"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}