Moldovan Foreign Affairs Ministry hosts first meeting of Moldova-EU Annual Dialogue in terms of security and defence; European officials appreciate ''country's resilience to hybrid attacks''

Chisinau, 14 November /MOLDPRES/ - The first meeting of the Moldova-EU Annual Dialogue in terms of security and defence was hosted by the Foreign Affairs Ministry (MAE) today.   

The meeting was co-chaired by the head of MAE’s Cooperation with EU Department, Alexandru Codreanu, and the director of the Peace, Partnerships and Crisis Management Directorate of the European External Action Service, Cosmin Dobran.    

Participating in the discussions were: Ambassador of the European Union to Moldova Jānis Mažeiks, representatives of the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Interior Ministry, Defence Ministry, Economic Development and Digitalization Ministry, Supreme Security Council, Agency for Cyber Security, Intelligence and Security Service, the Centre for Strategic Communication and Combating Misinformation and on behalf of EU – representatives of the European External Action Service.       

The discussions were focused on the implementation of the Security and Defence Partnership between Moldova and the European Union, as well as the further development of the cooperation in such sectors as: combating the hybrid threats, cyber security, consolidation of the capacities in the security and defence sector, including through the European Peace Facility and the cooperation with the EU Partnership Mission in Moldova, strategic communication and counteracting the manipulation of information and interferences from abroad.    

Cosmin Dobran congratulated Moldova on the professional holding of the elections and the constitutional referendum and welcomed the Moldovan citizens’ decision to introduce the goal of European integration in the country’s Constitution. The European official also appreciated the country’s resilience to the hybrid attacks and assured that EU would continue supporting Moldova.  

For his part, Alexandru Codreanu stressed that the accession to EU was the best mechanism to guarantee the peace and security of Moldova’s citizens. He noted that Moldova appreciated the significant extension of the cooperation with EU in the security and defence sector, especially against the background of the Russian aggression in Ukraine and the boosting of the hybrid operations against Moldova.  

The Moldova-EU annual dialogue is held in line with the Security and Defence Partnership between Moldova and the European Union, signed on 21 May 2024, Moldova being the first country to sign such a partnership with EU.