Moldovan deputy foreign minister keeps political consultations in Brussels

Chisinau, 10 March /MOLDPRES/ – Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration Lilian Darii has conducted political consultations in Brussels on the 9th and 10th of March with representatives of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), European Union as well as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Belgium, the Foreign and European Integration Ministry’s information and media communication service has reported.

In the framework of a special meeting of the Deputy’s Committee to NATO, Lilian Darii presented an assessment of the progresses in IPAP’s implementation for the period 2014-2016 and priority areas of cooperation within the same Action Plan for 2017-2019. Moldovan official thanked NATO member states for the steady support to the Republic of Moldova in the defence and security sector reforms, including financial support of the training programmes for national experts, institutional capacity building and the projects in the field of environment and cyber security.

Deputy Minister Darii held also meetings with Assistant of the Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy, Ambassador Alejandro Alvargonzález, as well as with Secretary General Assistant for Public Diplomacy, Ambassador Tacan Ildem, on the subject of Moldova’s priorities within cooperation with NATO. Special attention was paid to the importance of opening of the NATO Liaison Office in Chisinau in the forthcoming perspectives which would effectively contribute to the facilitation of the dialogue with the Republic of Moldova, including to the projects implementation within the Science for Peace and Security Program alongside to the promotion of public diplomacy on NATO’s role and benefits of Moldova - NATO cooperation, etc. NATO officials confirmed the Alliance’s support to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova, as well as respect to the neutrality of the country.

During the discussions with the Director of Crisis Management and Planning Directorate of the European External Action Service, Ambassador Gabor Iklody, there were reviewed recent developments in the dialogue between the Republic of Moldova and European Union in the field of foreign and security policies, in particular, the participation of the Republic of Moldova in the EU peacekeeping and crisis management operations.

At the meeting of the Deputy Minister Darii with the Director General for Multilateral Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belgium, Michel Goffin, a range of current bilateral relations subjects were examined in the context of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between the Republic of Moldova and the Kingdom of Belgium. The officials have reiterated mutual interest in extending and deepening the cooperation between Moldova and Belgium in commercial, economic and cultural-humanitarian fields.