In a historic first, the European Union will hold a summit with Moldova in Chisinau on July 4, a move signaling deeper political ties.
A draft of the summit declaration, seen by RFE/RL, says such meetings will become a regular feature of EU-Moldova relations.
On the other hand, the document is vague about the speed of the country’s EU accession process. It also urges Chisinau to do more about fighting corruption but curiously omits any mention of sanctions.
The text notes that “the EU will accelerate and further deepen its political and policy engagement with Moldova including, inter alia, through the holding of regular EU-Moldova Summits.”
This is a clear sign that Brussels is serious about forging a closer political relationship with Chisinau.
Normally, the EU only holds summits with larger countries like, for example, Brazil, China Japan, or the United States.
Since 1997, it has also held annual summits with Ukraine, and it held a summit with Turkey back in 2018 as well.
In contrast, other EU candidate countries -- such as Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia -- are not yet being offered individual summits with Brussels and must content themselves with annual EU-Western Balkans summits instead.
Brussels officials who spoke to RFE/RL say that the Moldova meeting is meant as a political recognition of pro-EU President Maia Sandu’s reform efforts and the liberal government’s support for her ahead of parliamentary elections on September 28. Opinion polls are showing that her Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) has lost support and may even lose power in the autumn.
Accession Talks?
The biggest “carrot” that Brussels wants to offer Moldova is to finally commence EU accession talks.
The text of the draft declaration notes that Brussels looks forward “to the next steps in Moldova’s accession process, opening negotiating clusters, starting with the fundamental cluster as soon as possible.”
The “fundamental cluster” is Brussels lingo for all the rule of law legislation that an EU candidate country has to enact before it is eligible to join the bloc.
Interestingly, an earlier draft seen by RFE/RL had “opening all negotiating clusters” but the word “all” has been removed in the latest version of the text.
This indicates that some EU member states -- which need to unanimously decide on opening and closing all accession-related files -- are casting doubt on the European Commission’s goal of opening negotiations on all 33 policy chapters by the end of this year.
'Decoupling' From Ukraine?
Rumors in Brussels diplomatic circles are swirling about an imminent “decoupling” of Moldova and Ukraine.
The two countries have so far walked together toward EU membership, with both getting candidate status in June 2022, for example.
However, with Hungary currently blocking Kyiv’s accession path, there have been suggestions that Moldova could be allowed to move ahead independently.
While the draft declaration is generally complimentary about Chisinau, it does contain some thinly veiled criticism on certain key issues.
Brussels still has concerns about graft, and the text notes that “in light of the upcoming elections, we also underscore the need to further strengthen the anti-corruption framework to uphold transparency, accountability and the integrity of the electoral process.”
Another line of the declaration underlines that only “some progress” has been made in areas such as judicial independence, increased transparency, and modernizing the administration of courts.
Russia's Hybrid Threats
While summit communiques rarely offer up stirring language of any sort, the current draft is scathing on Russia, condemning Moscow for “persistent hybrid threats” aimed at undermining “democratic elections in Moldova, including information manipulation and interference, and the use of large-scale electoral corruption through local proxies.”
It also accuses the Kremlin of “weaponizing energy” last winter with the goal of destabilizing the country.
On Transdniester, a separatist enclave on the left bank of the Dniester River, the document calls on Russia to withdraw all military personnel there.
It is estimated that there are around 1,500 troops with Russian passports in the breakaway region, which has been administered by a de facto separatist government with Moscow's backing since the Soviet Union collapsed in the early 1990s.
'Cyprus Model'?
There has also been growing discussion in both Chisinau and Brussels about applying a so-called “Cyprus model” to Moldova.
When Cyprus joined the EU in 2004, the entire island was admitted, even though the EU’s laws only applied in the south, which is controlled by the internationally recognized government. The northern part, administered by a Turkish-backed separatist authority, remains outside EU law.
The draft declaration leaves this possibility open for Chisinau by noting that “the EU will continue to support Moldova’s reintegration efforts and will ensure that the European path remains open and inclusive to all its citizens.”
Interestingly, there is no mention of any new sanctions on individuals with close links to Russia.
Since 2023, the EU has maintained asset freezes and visa bans on 16 Moldovan individuals. This includes oligarchs Ilan Shor and Vladimir Plahotniuc, who the bloc believes have undermined the territorial integrity of the eastern European country.
