Moldova continues on a difficult but determined path of reform - Kalnina-Lukasevica

RIGA - Moldova continues on a difficult but determined path of reform, emphasized Zanda Kalnina-Lukasevica (New Unity), Deputy Speaker of the Saeima.

As the Saeima Press Service told LETA, Kalnina-Lukasevica, who also serves as head of the Latvian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and as the Assembly’s Monitoring Committee rapporteur on Moldova, will participate in a fact-finding mission during a working visit to Chisinau on June 16 and 17 to assess Moldova’s fulfillment of the commitments it undertook upon joining the Council of Europe.

This is the first visit of its kind to Moldova since this past autumn’s parliamentary elections, which concluded a significant electoral cycle for the country. The elections took place under difficult circumstances, influenced by Russian interference in the electoral process, including illegal financing of political forces, cyberattacks, and widespread disinformation campaigns.

"Moldova continues on a difficult but determined path of reform, strengthening democratic institutions and moving closer to European Union (EU) standards. Latvia fully understands the challenges of the reform process, as our country once followed a similar path. That is why we consistently support Moldova’s efforts to strengthen the rule of law, fight corruption, and move toward full integration into the EU," Kalnina-Lukasevica emphasized.

During the visit, Kalnina-Lukasevica met with Igor Grosu, Speaker of the Moldovan Parliament; Chair of the Legal Affairs Committee, Veronica Rosca, and members of the committee; representatives of various parliamentary political groups; as well as representatives of civil society organizations and experts.

She also met with Mihai Popsoi, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Deputy Prime Minister of Moldova; Valeriu Chiveri, Deputy Prime Minister for Reintegration and the country’s chief negotiator in the Transnistria settlement process; Constitutional Court President Domnica Manole and judges of the court; as well as other representatives of the judiciary and the prosecutor’s office.

Discussions focused on the current political situation in Moldova, the reform process, the fight against corruption, the reform of the judicial system, the strengthening of parliamentary oversight, as well as the Transnistria conflict settlement process. The assessment also analyzed the administrative-territorial reform that has been launched.

Kalnina-Lukasevica notes that Moldova has initiated a process of administrative-territorial reform to increase the efficiency of local governments. The situation resembles the fragmentation of Latvian municipalities prior to the reform - in Moldova, more than 776 municipalities have fewer than 300 residents, while only 53 municipalities have more than 5,000 residents. Such fragmentation hinders the effective provision of services, including in the area of water supply. The reform aims to set a minimum population of 3,000 per municipality.

As the politician emphasizes, the discussions held so far with members of the Moldovan Parliament, representatives of state institutions, civil society, and experts confirm both the country’s progress and the need to maintain the pace of reform.

The information and conclusions gathered during the visit will be used in preparing the next report of PACE’s Monitoring Committee on Moldova’s progress in fulfilling its commitments to the Council of Europe.