Moldovan, British officials broach cooperation, reforms

Chisinau, Oct. 5 /MOLDPRES/- Deputy Prime Minister Nicu Popescu, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration had a meeting yesterday with Minister of State for Europe Leo Docherty, who is on a visit that reconfirms the firm support for the Republic of Moldova, oriented towards the agenda of strategic reforms implemented by authorities on the European modernization and the contribution to regional security.

According to the MAEIE's public diplomacy, strategic communication and media relations service, Popescu discussed with the British minister the support for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, within its internationally recognized borders. The Republic of Moldova and Great Britain strongly condemned the annexation of some Ukrainian regions under the illegal occupation of Russian military forces, as a result of the unjust war against Ukraine.

"I said clearly on this occasion as well: the Republic of Moldova does not recognize the attempted illegal annexation by the Russian Federation of some Ukrainian territories, which belong to Ukraine.

We also discussed deepening the Moldovan-British dialogue based on the strategic partnership, trade and cooperation between the countries.

We are interested with Great Britain in increasing trade and investments to strengthen economic cooperation", Popescu said.

The officials discussed liberalizing our exports to the UK for fruit and vegetables: apples, plums, grapes, cherries, juice, tomatoes and garlic, helping Moldovan farmers sell their goods. The Moldovan official assured the farmers that the authorities are constantly looking for new markets and opportunities to promote exports.

We all know that Great Britain is one of the biggest investors in the IT sector, and we are also happy that according to the volume of invested capital, it ranks among the top 10 investors in our country. The officials discussed the expansion of the British capital and the completion of the more than 200 companies that are already active here in the sectors of interest: IT, automotive, electronics, renewable energy, fintech and tourism.

As we receive a lot of requests from our diaspora in Great Britain, Popescu asked the British side to promote negotiations and sign agreements on the mutual conversion of permits, reduction of roaming charges, social protection and mutual recognition of diplomas, certificates and scientific titles.

"We talked about the important contribution within the Support Platform for Moldova, the impact of the war and the energy crisis, assistance for anti-corruption measures, improving the business environment, justice reform, reforms in the key sectors - banking and energy, strengthening the rule of law and of course, about the independent press. The good evolution of the partnership over the years is registered in defense, neutrality not implying isolation, on the contrary, meaning continuous investments in defense capabilities.

To fight corruption and bring to justice all those who stole and removed state assets from the country, I voiced hope for closer cooperation between the legal institutions of our countries", he said.

The sides decided to further strengthen the political dialogue on reforms, foreign policy, security, justice, economic, social, scientific and cultural cooperation for the benefit of the citizens of both states.

Photo: MAEIE