Moldova Invest in dialogue with Adrian DUPU, State Secretary in the Department for Relations with the Republic of Moldova

With hopes for a European future, the Republic of Moldova is directing its steps towards accession to the European Union.

In a strategic move, the country has reinforced its commitment to European values, viewing accession as a crucial step towards progress and stability. Despite the challenges, Moldova’s determination to integrate European norms and standards remains steadfast, highlighting its aspirations for a brighter future within the European family.

Constructive dialogue and close collaboration with officials such as Mr. Adrian Dupu, State Secretary in the Department for Relations with the Republic of Moldova, underscore the importance of Moldova’s accession to the European Union.

This strategic partnership reflects intense efforts to strengthen cross-border ties and promote European values in Moldova. Through shared commitment and a shared vision, Moldova’s ambitions to integrate into European structures become more tangible and achievable.

The Republic of Moldova is taking concrete steps towards joining the European Union. How do you think this infl uences the business environment?

In one word, I’d say: positively. However, I feel the need to elaborate a bit. The moment the Republic of Moldova received the invitation to start negotiations for EU accession, the metrics measuring Moldova’s economic opportunities exploded.

Businesspeople seek profit, but they’re also very attentive to the security of their investments. Indeed, being part of the EU’s Eastern frontier might not necessarily be a plus for indicators defining the foreign investment opportunity matrix.

But, repeating, if the European Union has decided that Moldova deserves to join the European economic space, all European and global investment vectors will redefine the Moldovan economy. Equally, this invitation to start accession negotiations doesn’t solve the problem itself. By carefully coordinating all necessary and available energies towards generating new investments and, implicitly, properly paid jobs, the pro-European government in Chișinău will achieve the desired result: resetting and rebooting the Moldovan economy.

What should local authorities and private companies expect with the start of accession negotiations?

EU accession is a very precise, even technical process, although its political component is evident at first glance. After strategic decisions have been made, know that the stage is set for the best European specialists in various fields, specialists whose sole mission is to coordinate all negotiation chapters.

EU specialists don’t engage in politics. They demand the necessary corrections be made. Therefore, central and local authorities should know that the set of requirements is very serious. The business environment, in turn, will receive all due attention so that Moldova’s economy, at the technical moment of accession, can withstand competition and all the details governing the European economic space.

I’ve said this in other interviews as well. EU accession comes with clear and indisputable benefits for citizens, but also with very serious sets of responsibilities for local public authorities, central authorities, and all regulatory institutions across all economic sectors. The rules of the economic game in Moldova will change. In what sense? They’ll be correctly and transparently directed towards the set of rules regulating the entire European economy, from Bucharest to Lisbon, if you will.

“For the next 10 to 15 years, the strategic direction of a generation must be the social, economic, cultural, historical, and identity space where future generations born in Moldova want to live and work. “

What do you think is the political constant and strategic positioning, at a principled level, that Moldova should assume for the next decade?

The citizens of the Republic of Moldova will live better only if they decide to become European citizens, as we Romanians are, for example. The standard of living in the European Union is better than in Moldova. People have rights and freedoms, meritocracy is not just a bedtime story, justice is equal for all, the rule of law functions, schools are schools, hospitals are equipped and can off er quality services, businesses thrive, people have pensions, children have generous allowances, and so on.

The European Union is a model for Moldova. Most Moldovan emigrants live and work in the European Union. Therefore, the political constant you ask about doesn’t necessarily have a name, but rather a direction, a historic commitment to what the people east of the Prut River want to become. Being truly European is not an abstraction. Holding the passport of a country that’s an EU member is a benefit that Moldovan citizens who are also Romanian citizens understand very well.

For the next 10 to 15 years, the strategic direction of a generation must be the social, economic, cultural, historical, and identity space where future generations born in Moldova want to live and work. Any other discussion, from my point of view, with your permission, is an unjustified waste of time. There is no reason not to want to live
in your country as the over 500 million Europeans do.