Moldova and Russia may sign an intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the energy sector in the first quarter of 2022.
This was discussed during a meeting held in Moscow by the co-chairs of the Moldovan-Russian intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation - Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Moldova Nicu Popescu and Russian Minister of Agriculture Dmitry Patrushev. They agreed to hold the next meeting of the Moldovan-Russian intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation in March 2022 in Moscow. The heads of the intergovernmental commission, among other things, considered issues of bilateral cooperation in the field of energy and agreed to work out the possibility of signing an intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the energy sector in the first quarter of 2022.The parties discussed topical issues of cooperation between Moldova and Russia, including in the context of the 20th anniversary celebrating in November the signing of the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation between Russia and Moldova. Dmitry Patrushev noted that Russia is determined to continue its traditionally friendly and effective interaction with Moldova and expects the Moldovan side to maintain a balance in relations with the European Union and the EAEU. According to Dmitry Patrushev, the trade turnover between the countries is growing this year. As of the end of 9 months, it exceeded $1.3 billion. In particular, the head of the Russian Ministry of Agriculture drew attention to the positive dynamics of mutual trade in agricultural products and food - indicators are growing, both in exports and imports. As the minister noted, it is necessary to build up the potential of this area, including through interaction in the field of food safety and quality. In this regard, an important step is the signing of an agreement on cooperation in this area. Rospotrebnadzor (Роспотребнадзор) and the National Agency for Food Safety of Moldova are working on the document. As it was mentioned, another important aspect of interaction is the joint counteraction to the spread of coronavirus infection. “Let me remind you that Russia has donated Sputnik V vaccines to Moldova, as well as test systems. In addition, a visit of Rospotrebnadzor specialists to Moldova was organized. We are ready to continue to assist Moldova in the fight against coronavirus, as well as other infectious diseases. In particular, a corresponding Memorandum of Cooperation is currently being developed. Given the difficult situation with the pandemic, we consider the document to be extremely relevant,” Dmitry Patrushev said. According to him, in addition, Moldova is one of the most promising markets for Russian industrial products, including agricultural machinery, equipment, vehicles, metals. // 18.11.2021- InfoMarket.
