France re-confirms its support of Moldova’s European option. The chairman of the French National Assembly’s Commission for foreign policy, Eduard Balladur, has made statements to this effect during a meting with Moldovan Parliament Speaker Marian Lupu.

Lupu paid a 24-26 October visit to Paris, following an invitation by French Senate Speaker Christian Poncelet. Marian Lupu was accompanied by the MPs Efim Agachi, Vlad Cubreacov, Alexandru Lipcan and Grigore Petrenco, according to a communique by the Moldovan parliament’s press and image service.

The Moldovan delegation had meetings with the speakers of the two chambers of the French parliament: Senate and National Assembly, the chairmen of the commissions for foreign policy of the two chambers, leaders of the political groups within the Senate and the National Assembly, of the Senate’s friendship group with Moldova, which is headed by Senator Josette Durrieu, as well as the secretary general of the International Francophonie Organisation and the secretary general of the Western Europe Union’s Assembly.

During the visit, Marian Lupu participated in a roundtable organized at the French Institute of International Relations, during which he informed the participants about the current stage of reforms in Moldova, the country’s European option, Moldova’s current regional context and the Transnistrian conflict settlement. After the talks, Lupu gave an interview to the editor-in-chief of a famous French magazine of diplomacy, L’Essentiel des Relations Internationales. At the end of the visit, the parliamentary delegation participated in a reception occasioned by the 15th anniversary of Moldova’s independence, organized by the Moldovan embassy at the French Senate.

On 24 October, the parliamentary delegation, headed by Moldovan Speaker Marian Lupu, had a meeting with the chairman of the French National Assembly’s Commission for Foreign Policy, Eduard Balladur, and the commission’s members. Balladur confirmed his support of Moldova’s European option, and highlighted, at the same time, that France foresees no immediate extension of the European Union after Romania and Bulgaria enter the EU. Balladur stressed the opportunity to launch talks about the subsequent extension after the enlarged Europe’s institutional extension in 25 format and starting January 2007 – 27 member states format.

Marian Lupu confirmed the Moldovan leadership’s realistic and pragmatic approach to Moldova’s European integration. He reiterated that first and foremost the Chisinau authorities see the integration as the internal legislative and institutional adjustment to the standards and practices of the European Union. At the same time, Lupu continued, it is very important that the EU member states support Moldova’s efforts to this end, that the instruments of the new European Neighbourhood Policy be put into operation, that Moldova’s visa regime for the Schengen area be simplified, and that a new agreement of the Moldovan-European relations be signed once the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement expires in 2008. It is also important that the EU autonomous trade preferences and new programmes for technical and financial assistance for Moldova come to back these efforts.

During the meeting, the sides tackled the current stage of the Transnistrian conflict settlement process, the EU’s participation alongside the USA and the other sides in the 5+2 negotiations, as well as the current stage of Moldova’s relations with the states participating in the negotiations – Ukraine and Russia. Marian Lupu noted that the Chisinau authorities rely on the fact that the EU will be promoted from the status of observer to the status of full-fledged participant in the negotiating process.

The sides described as very useful and productive the exchange of opinions carried out during the meeting, and they agreed to launch permanent consultations and to exchange visits and information between the French National Assembly’s Commission for Foreign Policy and the Moldovan Parliament’s Commission for Foreign Policy and European Integration.

On the same day, the Moldovan speaker met Secretary General of the International Francophonie Organisation E.S Abdou Diouf. The sides considered Moldova’s participation in this organisation, the Francophonie’s Parliamentary Assembly’s (FPA) activity and its role in the parliamentary collaboration on the Francophone area, as well as the Moldovan parliament’s more active involvement within the FPA.

Lupu thanked the high official for the support and interest expressed by the organisation he leads in Moldova’s modernization efforts, as well as for Diouf’s personal contribution to promoting the Moldovan-French bilateral dialogue. Lupu invited him to visit Chisinau as guest of the Moldovan parliament.

Abdou Diouf reiterated the IFO’s support of the reforms promoted in Moldova and expressed the Francophone community’s solidarity with Moldova’s territorial reintegration efforts.

On 24 October evening, the Moldovan parliament’s delegation participated in an official dinner given by the friendship group with Moldova within the French Senate, headed by Josette Durrieu. The Moldovan MPs and the French senators exchanged opinions about the Moldovan democratic and economic reforms, the European option and Moldova’s efforts of legislative and institution adjustment to the European standards, as well as other up-to-date issues for Moldova: the current stage of the Transnistrian conflict settlement process, promotion of the local democracy, the economic reforms, the relations with the neighbours and the country’s regional context.

On 25 October morning, Speaker Marian Lupu participated in a roundtable at the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI), where he delivered a speech on the topic Moldova at Europe’s Border. Participating in the event were journalists, analysts, researchers, representatives of the academic circle and French politicians, as well as foreign diplomats accredited to Paris. At the end of the meeting, Lupu gave an interview to the French magazine of diplomacy, L’Essentiel des Relations Internationales.

Next on, the Moldovan parliament’s delegation met Secretary General of the Western Europe Union’s Assembly Colin Cameron. During the meeting, Cameron and his colleagues from the Assembly’s Secretariat informed about the WEU Assembly’s activity, its operation mechanism and the main working trends, the WEU-NATO and the WEU-EU relations, as well as the WEU’s relations with the Russian and Ukrainian parliaments.

Lupu reiterated the Moldovan parliament’s intention to join this European parliamentary forum, which tackles security and defense issues. The sides agreed that a fact-collecting mission of the WEU Assembly’s political commission will pay a 1-3 November visit to Chisinau. A decision on accepting the Moldovan parliament as special guest of the Assembly is to be undertaken after that.

On the same day, Speaker of French Senate Christian Poncelet invited the Moldovan parliamentary delegation, headed by Marian Lupu, to a dinner, within which the officials approached many issues of common interest, among which Moldova’s European option and its efforts of European integration, the special character of the Moldovan-French relations, which is due to the fact that the two countries belong to the European and Francophone area, as well as certain concrete parliamentary collaboration instruments, among which exchanging visits between the friendship groups and permanent commissions.

Marian Lupu proposed to explore the possibility to accept periodical visits by small Moldovan parliamentary groups, during which the MPs would inform about the processes and events in Moldova, about the difficulties it is confronting with, and Moldova’s internal and external achievements, in order to establish a good communication bridge between our parliaments. Accepting this proposal, Poncelet proposed that the Senate hosts probations for the Moldovan lawmakers, which can be launched starting next December already.

The two speakers exchanged opinions about the Transnistrian settlement, including the EU’s participation in this process through the EU Border Assistance Mission, its involvement in the 5+2 negotiations and appointment of EU’s special representative for the Transnistrian settlement. Lupu voiced hope that the negotiations’ format will be changed by assigning the EU and the USA the status of full-fledged participants in this process. The sides also debated the current stage of Moldova’s relations with Russia and with the neighbouring countries, as well as Moldova’s economic development. They agreed that it will be opportune that the French investors’ should have a higher presence in the real sector of Moldova’s economy, given that Moldova’s investment climate has all the conditions necessary in this respect.

On the same day, Lupu and the parliamentary delegation met the chairman of the commission for foreign policy, defense and armed forces within the French Senate, Serge Vincon, and Secretary General of the French Foreign Ministry Philippe Faure. During the two meetings, the Moldovan speaker and his colleagues informed the officials about the latest advancements in Moldova, about the political consensus with regard to Moldova’s European option and the efforts of carrying out this option: signing and implementing the EU Action Plan for Moldova, which sees institutional, legislative and structural adjustment to the European standards, stipulated in the European acquits. To Moldova, meeting these commitments is, first and foremost, an internal priority, which will allow reaching a new development level, Lupu said. Moldova hopes that the EU will contribute to this through new programmes of technical and financial assistance, by providing the autonomous trade preferences and simplifying the visa regime, as well as by negotiating a new juridical agreement of the Moldovan-European relations when the Action Plan is fulfilled, so as to offer European prospects to Moldova.

During the meetings, the sides also debated the evolution of the Transnistrian conflict settlement process, the change of the negotiating format, the EU’s and the USA’s involvement in the settlement process and the actions the Moldovan parliament took in 2005 in this direction – the 22 July 2005 Law on the basic principles of the special juridical status of the settlements from the left bank of Dniestre and the appeals on the region’s democratisation and demilitarization. Lupu expressed the Moldovan authorities’ gratitude for the EU’s contribution to the Transnistrian settlement. The French officials confirmed that the Transnistrian issue is always on the agenda of the French-Russian political talks. The sides also approached the opportunity to change the format of the region’s peacekeeping operation, by transforming it into a military-civil mission with international participation.

On 26 October, the Moldovan parliamentary delegation had a meeting with Speaker of the French National Assembly Jean-Louis Debre. The high French official was informed about the special importance the Chisinau authorities attach to the Moldovan-French relations, which is proved by the fact that 42 out of 101 MPs are members of the parliamentary friendship group with France. The sides agreed on the need to boost the parliamentary relations between our countries, in the European and Francophone context, by inviting Moldovan lawmakers to probations at the National Assembly and by launching the practice of periodical missions by the Moldovan MPs in Paris in order to inform the French colleagues about Moldova s latest advancements in European integration, Transnistrian conflict settlement and the Moldovan-French bilateral collaboration.

Jean-Louis Debre also proposed to the Moldovan colleagues to organize the participation of the Moldovan French-speaking youth and children in the meetings of the Children Parliament within the National Assembly, which are held once a year in Paris, as well as to place information about the latest development in Moldova on the Assembly’s website. The sides also agreed to exchange information about the judiciary system reform, which is a topic of utmost importance for France.

During the meeting with the chairman of the French Senate’s delegation to the EU, Senator Hubert Haenel, and the chairperson of the Union for Popular Movement group, Senator Josselin de Rohan, the Moldovan parliamentary delegation described the current situation in Moldova, the consensus achieved in order to fulfill Moldova’s European integration goal and the efforts taken to reintegrate the country. The French officials confirmed their support of the country’s European option and reiterated the importance to use the instruments of the European Neighbourhood Policy to carry out this goal. The sides also exchanged opinions on Moldova’s current regional context and the Moldovan-Russian relations.

At the end of the visit, Lupu and the parliamentary delegation participated in a reception given by the Moldovan embassy in Paris on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of Moldova’s independence. Attending the event were representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited to Paris and of the French state institutions, employees of the Paris-based international organisations, and representatives of the Moldovan diaspora in France. France was represented by Speaker of the French Senate Christian Poncelet in line with the protocol norms set in this country. // Moldpres