Poland’s Andrzej Duda hosted Moldova’s Maia Sandu at Warsaw's Belweder Palace on Thursday, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
Support for Moldova’s EU aspirations
At a joint news conference afterwards, Duda note that the European Union last month accepted Moldova as a candidate to join the bloc.
“This is hugely happy news for us,” he said.
Duda added that for over a year, Poland had been advising Moldova on how to reform the country to facilitate integration with the EU.
He said: “We seek to assist the Moldovan authorities by sending experts and offering various material and financial help, for instance, so that this very difficult reform process, which we know well from the time Poland was aspiring to join the EU, runs smoothly.”
War in Ukraine
The president went on to say that both Poland and Moldova had found themselves in a difficult situation following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Moldova is in an especially difficult predicament because, apart from sharing a border with Ukraine, part of its territory, the so-called Transnistria, is a breakaway Russian enclave,” he said.
“It’s an enormous political problem that Moldova’s democratically elected, pro-reform authorities are grappling with,” Duda stressed.
He added: “There is also the problem of the legacy of the Soviet era, when Moldova’s industry was made dependent on Russian deliveries, particularly gas.”
The president told reporters that Poland was seeking to assist Moldova, but added that “the situation is very difficult” due to inflation and rising costs of living.
He urged: “Therefore it’s perfectly valid for the whole European community, the countries that are better off economically today, to support Moldova.”
During a visit to Chișinău in March, Duda announced that Poland would provide Moldova with a EUR 20 million interest-free loan as the country struggles with the effects of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and rising energy prices.
Moldova’s Sandu on Thursday thanked Poland for its help and for supporting Moldova’s EU bid.
She said she was pleased that Poland and Moldova had “energised their contacts” and added that both countries were interested in “deepening their cooperation.”
Thursday was day 141 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
(pm/gs)
Source: IAR, PAP, prezydent.pl