Denmark's EU Presidency: New hope for Moldova's EU bid
Denmark assumed the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union on July 1, and the Republic of Moldova is counting on new momentum in its European journey.
The Danish presidency brings firm commitments to support Moldova and Ukraine in their EU accession process, despite a volatile geopolitical context and the pace of EU enlargement being hindered by multiple crises, stated Francesca Cristea, Director of Public Policy at Europuls, during the Moldova 1 show "IN CONTEXT."
According to Francesca Cristea, Denmark's priorities for its EU presidency focus on three key areas: border defense, energy security, and digital transformation.
"The Danish presidency reiterated today its commitment to accelerate negotiations and support Moldova and Ukraine. We certainly anticipate broader integration of Ukraine into defense plans, especially concerning the EU's borders and particularly in the digital sphere. It's also crucial to highlight energy security, a significant focus for the Danish presidency. We expect concrete measures in these three areas where Moldova can truly make a difference," stated Francesca Cristea.
She also underscored the pivotal role of the September State of the Union address, to be delivered by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, in shaping support strategies, including for Chișinău. Increased budgets for defense and for Ukraine serve as an indirect guarantee for Moldova's stability and European future, she noted.
"We can infer the trajectory of European support for Moldova from the priorities and flagship initiatives presented in this address," the expert highlighted.
Cristea added that the Polish EU presidency, which ran from January to June this year, faced a challenging mission, having to manage both security concerns and internal EU tensions.
"The Polish presidency had a tough assignment, not only from a security standpoint but also in reconciling internal adversaries within the European Union. The Danish presidency faces an unenviable task: to contend with populism while simultaneously advancing security and competitiveness," emphasized the Europuls representative.
Although the geopolitical context remains volatile and the pace of EU enlargement is impacted by multiple crises, the expert asserts that Moldova's pro-European trajectory must be maintained through sustained efforts and broad societal support.
"We must focus on fostering citizens' trust in the European project, ensuring transparency in the dialogue between citizens and decision-makers, and building a genuine partnership among all societal representatives: decision-makers, academia, the business community, and local authorities. It is paramount to achieve this to ensure that all benchmarks are met and all reforms are implemented, despite the challenging context within the EU," Francesca Cristea underscored.
For the next six months, Moldova is counting on Danish support for its EU accession. "We have ambitious plans for the upcoming half-year and intend to make significant progress in the EU accession negotiation process," declared Cristina Gherasimov, Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration, during Denmark's assumption of the EU presidency.
It is worth mentioning that Poland held the presidency of the Council of the EU from the beginning of this year, before Denmark assumed it on July 1. Denmark has notably made continental security its priority. According to the established program of the rotating trio, the Danish presidency will conclude on December 31, 2025, and will be succeeded by Cyprus.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
