The Council of the European Union recommends opening on December 15 accession talks with Moldova and Ukraine - mass media.
Foreign mass media reported this, citing the text of the final conclusions of the EU Council, which at a summit in Brussels on December 14-15 is expected to approve them and recommend opening accession talks with Moldova and Ukraine. The consensus, however, is that the two countries should go "as a package". The preliminary draft of the final declaration, accessed by Radio Moldova, states that the EU Council welcomes Moldova's substantial progress in achieving the objectives underlying its candidate status in the face of the significant challenges posed by Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine and hybrid actions against Moldova itself. The EU stands ready to continue to assist Moldova with reforms and their consistent implementation, including on the path towards the EU. In terms of substantive provisions, the Council recognizes Moldova's clear commitment to the reform process and the strong steps taken and underlines the importance of maintaining sustained and tangible reform progress, in particular in the areas of rule of law, justice and fundamental rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities. Moldova is encouraged to continue to make progress in justice reform as well as in the fight against corruption, with a particular focus on further strengthening the solid record of investigations and convictions, including in high-level corruption cases. The EU Council takes note of the preliminary findings of the OSCE/ODIHR that the November 5 local elections were conducted peacefully and efficiently under challenging conditions. However, a negative impact on the electoral process was noted, both from foreign interference and restrictive measures imposed for national security reasons. In view of the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections, the Council of the EU calls on Moldova to ensure that measures to combat malicious interference are in line with international standards. The EU Council welcomes Moldova's efforts to strengthen its energy security and independence of supply, considering that Moldova needs to further increase its generating capacity and strengthen measures to utilize renewable energy and energy efficiency, in particular through the Moldova Support Package. Finally, the EU Council reaffirms its commitment to support Moldova's sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders. // 11.12.2023 - InfoMarket.
