At a joint press conference with the President of Moldova, Maia Sandu on Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron said that Moldova’s desire to join the European Union was “absolutely genuine.”
Moldova, which is sandwiched between Ukraine and Romania, an EU member itself, is one of three former Soviet republics, along with Georgia and Ukraine, that applied to join the EU within days of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 24.
It has pursued its application despite concerns that it would be drawn into the conflict as a result of instability in its Transdniestria region, which is occupied by Russian peacekeeping troops and controlled by pro-Russian separatists and on the Ukrainian border.
‘A chance at membership’
At a vital Council meeting next week, France, which heads the European Union till the end of the month, will help negotiate an agreement among EU countries on the issue of Moldova’s bid to join the bloc, according to Macron.
He called the conflict in Ukraine “a threat to the entire region’s stability,” adding that Moldova was “already a country established inside the European family.”
Macron stated that he wants to reach an agreement on granting the three nations official candidate status, adding that Moldova’s candidacy should not be split from Ukraine’s.
Sandu stated that Moldova desired to join the EU “as quickly as possible But, as realists, we recognize that there is still more to be done.”
Moldova’s EU integration has been hampered by the Ukraine conflict, but she claims that reforms are moving the country closer to EU norms.
