Maia Sandu: EU decision on opening Moldova negotiations could come within weeks in Brussels
The Republic of Moldova is expected to receive a formal decision regarding the opening of accession negotiations with the European Union in the coming weeks. However, authorities in Chisinau must meet all the intermediate objectives outlined in the accession process by September, prior to a new assessment by the European Commission, according to President Maia Sandu.
Maia Sandu stated during a Realitatea program, “We hope that this official decision will be made. We have been working on the next steps for almost a month, but it is crucial that this formal decision is reached.”
The next critical deadline for the Republic of Moldova is in September, when the European Commission will evaluate the progress of reforms and the commitments undertaken by Chisinau.
“There are intermediate indicators that are very important, and it is essential that we achieve them by September. Following this, the European Commission will conduct its assessment, and of course, we want to receive another favorable annual report. Some institutions have many responsibilities and work intensively, but they still have significant work to complete, while others have fewer obligations. Overall, progress is being made, but much remains to be done before September, specifically by the end of August, to ensure we meet our deadlines,” Sandu explained.
Some of the most challenging negotiation areas will relate to agriculture and the environment, sectors where the Republic of Moldova will seek extended transition periods to align with European standards, according to the president.
"Environmental protection and agriculture are two sectors that require substantial effort. On the one hand, we aim for clean water and clean air to improve environmental conditions, which benefits everyone. On the other hand, this requires economic agents to invest in order to meet European Union standards. We are carefully analysing each commitment to ensure that we understand how it can be realistically implemented, thereby avoiding the assumption of obligations that we cannot fulfil", Sandu added.
Additionally, Marta Kos announced on May 12 that the European Union could initiate political negotiations for all accession chapters with the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine within the next two months.
According to the European executive, both the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine are technically prepared to begin political negotiations, and a change of power in Budapest could finally facilitate this process.
Recently, the European Parliament also urged the Council to officially start negotiations for all clusters, beginning with Fundamental Values during the Cypriot presidency, with the goal of addressing the remaining five clusters by the end of 2026.
