Speech by Moldovan PM on Romanian parliament’s ratification of 150-million-euros-worth loan agreement

Chisinau, 13 October /MOLDPRES/- Prime Minister Valeriu Strelet was supposed to give a speech on the Romanian parliament’s ratification of the Romanian-Moldovan 150-million-euro reimbursable loan agreement, on 13 October. Since the prime minister’s Brussels-Bucharest flight was in delay on the ground, the speech planned to be given at the Chamber of Deputies has been cancelled, the government’s communication and media relations department has reported.

The full text of the speech is presented below:

The speech of Moldovan Prime Minister Valeriu Strelet at the Romanian Parliament
(13 October 2015)

Dear President of the Chamber of Deputies, Valeriu Zgonea,

Dear MPs,

Distinguished audience,

I am honoured to be here in the Romanian parliament, and speak to you to express gratitude and insist on several aspects that make our relations fully special, due to the communion of language, culture and history. I will take this opportunity to express the Romanian people, represented by you, my profound gratitude. I am glad to ascertain that the Moldovan-Romanian dialogue has reached an impressive intensity, within the bilateral strategic partnership for Moldova’s EU integration. I am pleased to announce that the latest years have been deeply marked by the consolidation of the bilateral efforts and actions of joint interest to support Moldova’s EU integration course, implement numerous education and social projects, as well as joint strategic and energy projects.

Romania has always been and continues to be Moldova’s most consistent supporter. It has efficiently backed our aspiration to become a democratic and European state. Moreover, Romania is our natural binder with the European Union, it plays a determinant role in the liberalization of the visa regime for Moldova and signing of the EU Association Agreement, with its component establishing the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area. I am very glad to ascertain that Romania was the first EU state to ratify these historically important documents, just a few days after being signed.

Romania did not hesitate to actively help Moldova overcome the consequences of Russia’s embargo on Moldovan products, following the signing of the EU Association Agreement. It shared its experience on conquering new sales markets and became Moldova’s first trade partner. The Romanian and Moldovan governments are currently taking efforts to adjust regulatory standards and conditions to attract more EU investments. We are also planning to make Romania our main investor in the near future. I hope that the inter-governmental joint commission on economic cooperation, which is to hold a meeting in Bucharest on 14 October, will come up with new proposals and concrete projects in priority development areas, so that our objectives are implemented without delay.

I would like to address, in this context, the special signification of the joint meeting of the Moldovan and Romanian governments, held in Constanta on 22 September. It gave us an opportunity to openly and constructively discuss the enforcement of joint projects in the energy sector and other areas of mutual interest. I reiterate Moldova’s interest in the construction of the Iasi-Ungheni gas pipeline, Isaccea –Vulcanesti – Chisinau, Suceava–Balti and Iasi-Ungheni electrical interconnection, as well as in the construction of bridges across the Prut River and other strategic projects of considerable importance to Moldova’s rapprochement with Romania and the EU. Once implemented, these projects will help Moldova overcome its economic and political vulnerability and enter a European stable and predictable space.

Dear president, Dear MPs,

As you all know, Moldova and its current government must face and solve more challenges related to its security and regional economic crisis, which have been described as unprecedented since 1992 till present. The situation has been worsened by a large-scale fraud in November 2014, which was built as pyramid of bad credits several years in a row. Its consequences hinder the economic development and create serious social problems, such as price rises and lowering of living standards. Certain hired political forces are manipulating people, whose rebellion is absolutely natural in these circumstances. These actors take advantage of the current situation to revenge for their electoral failures, hijack power and divert Moldova from its EU integration course. I might just add that these movements are being supported by anti-European and anti-occidental propagandistic efforts, ensured by the omnipresent Russian mass-media in Moldova.

In these conditions, the government started, just from the first days of its work, more actions for: macro-financial stabilization through  cleaning and improving the banking system, recovery of delays in implementing the process of Moldova’s association with EU, preparation and holding negotiations with IMF, re-launching the process of reform of the Public Administration (PA), resetting the anti-corruption and integrity system, more efficient promotion of projects on ensuring the country’s energy security and many other actions. Last week, I launched, along with President Niciolae Timofti and Parliament Speaker Andrian Candu, a public appeal, through which representatives of the civic associative sector, political class, academic environment, creation associations, social partners and other relevant public actors are invited to an open and sincere dialogue, due to lay foundations of a joint platform, in order to consolidate the society and create conditions for the country’s development. 

Moldova’s development partners (EU, IMF, World Bank, and others) welcome the actions of the government, encouraging the promotion of reforms and adjusting the latter to current processes, but while maintaining suspended the budgetary assistance for our country, which was to ensure implementation of reforms and investment projects. A vicious circle has appeared – to improve the situation, consolidate the society and move forward, we need the urgent assistance of the development partners, whose condition is to firstly prove that we promote reforms (without budgetary support), after which the assistance will come.  

The significance of the present political moment resides in the fact that, namely in these conditions, the government and parliament of Romania take a decision to provide Moldova with a loan worth 150 million euros, in similar conditions to the ones in which Romania attracts money from international financial markets. Romania not only responded to a call for help without delay, but also in a record time fulfilled the needed appropriate domestic procedures for such kind of transactions – signing the agreement, issuance of the presidential decree and the document’s ratification. I assure you that the first installment of this loan, that we are to capitalize this year, is really useful for us, contributing to the sustainability of the budgetary process and helping us avoid drastic cuts from the spending meant for investments. I also know that Romania drew criticism for this decision on behalf of some European authorities, who consider that Moldova must resist the challenges it faces with its own powers. Knowing the domestic situation in detail, I firmly tell skeptics and critics – Moldova needs help namely now! Otherwise, the citizens of my country will irreversibly miss the achievement of the European integration aspiration and representatives of neo-imperial post-Soviet aspirations will take their flings in the area between the Prut and Dniester rivers!     

Namely on these grounds we appreciate from the bottom of our hearts the prompt response of the Romanian authorities to a call for help in critical moments, with the significance of the answer having a multiple value.  On behalf of the government of Moldova and the people of my country, I express gratitude to my counterpart, Victor Ponta, with whom we have an almost daily friendly and efficient communication, Mr. President Klaus Iohannis, with whom I have recently  had a very warm and sincere discussion in New York at the UN anniversary session, who gave me assurances that he fully backs the assistance for Moldova, and not in the least, to President of the Chamber of Deputies Valeriu Zgonea, who both during his recent visit to Chisinau, as well in his earlier and recent actions, encouraged us to move forward and not give up in facing difficulties. I also express sincere thanks to other authorities and officials, as well as to the Romanian citizens for the constant and solid support for Moldova on its way of modernization and development.    

I would like to close by expressing firm conviction that Moldova will turn its aspiration of European integration into an irreversible process. This is a hard way, with many challenges, maybe sometimes with deceptions, yet the objective to ensure a better life to the peoples of Romania and Moldova fully justifies our joint effort!  

Thank you.

(Editor M. Jantovan)