Foreign minister: First steps in negotiation process with EU start today
10:34 | 15.12.2023 Category: Political
Chisinau, Dec. 15 /MOLDPRES/- First step for the opening of accession negotiations will be taken today. Before the start of the negotiations, a screening will take place, which will evaluate the degree of alignment of the legislation of the Republic of Moldova with the European one. Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration Nicu Popescu made the statements today.
"Practically, our internal mechanisms are quite well prepared for advancement because the progress made so far has been made with the teams we have at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, in those 35 working groups in which they are represented practically all state institutions. So this negotiation mechanism is practically ready", said Popescu.
He said that the first chapter will be the chapter related to justice.
"It is about justice reform and the fight against corruption. In our discussions with the European Commission, justice reform and the fight against corruption are the number one objective and the first chapter we will focus on in the coming weeks and months," the minister said.
European funds offered to the Republic of Moldova after the opening of the negotiations will increase significantly. This process will be gradual and will be influenced by the speed with which justice reform is carried out.
On December 14, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine received the green light for EU accession negotiations, and Georgia obtained the status of a candidate country.
