Imedia recently spoke with Igor Corman, the president of the legislative Committee for Foreign Policy and European Integration (CFPEI).
Imedia: You are planning on taking a trip to Hungary on February 23-25, 2010. What is the purpose of this visit?
Igor Corman: I was invited there by Zsolt Nemeth, the head of the Hungarian Parliament's committee for foreign policy. On February 23, I will hold bilateral talks with representatives from this committee. Between February 24 and 25, Budapest will also host a meeting of representatives from the Visegrad Group legislatures (Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Poland) with legislators from members of the Eastern Partnership (Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Belarus, Armenia, and Azerbaijan). We will try to tie these two events together- the bilateral meeting in Budapest and the gathering between the two groups. I will be accompanied on this visit by Mr. Victor Mindru, CFPEI vice president.
Imedia: What are you planning to achieve during this visit?
Igor Corman: In terms of my bilateral meetings, it is part of our interest in strengthening legislative ties between the two countries. It is well-known that we have received help from Hungary in the context of our European integration efforts. Also, along our interest in developing ties with older E.U. members, we are interested in countries that have recently joined the E.U., especially considering the experience they have had in this transition period.
Hungary has been one of the most active countries in this regard, along with the Baltic states, Poland, and so on. Budapest has also had an active presence here in Chisinau via their representative at the European Union Border Assistance Mission - Ferenc Banfi - and the E.U.'s special representative to Chisinau Kalman Mizsei.
In addition, we all know that Hungary is the country that took on the difficult task of opening up the common visa center in its own embassy. [Imedia: the common visa center releases visas for a large number of European countries in order to facilitate the process for Moldovans]. This openness on the part of our Hungarian partners continues.
The legislative dimension is also important here. Both Hungary and Moldova are parliamentary countries and we will primarily talk about European affairs. We are in a new phase after we began negotiations about the association agreement with the E.U., and we need both support and expertise from our partners.
Along with the quality of negotiators, it is important for us to have lobbying activities in E.U. countries, we need to be more active, to be heard, and to take advantage of the possibilities that E.U. countries can offer us. All of these aspects are relevant for the future of our ties in the context of our developing closer ties to the E.U., and we will talk about these issues during this visit.
As far as the second part of the program, the meeting of legislative representatives from the Visegrad Group and the Eastern Partnership, we will have a conference on February 24, which will be separated in several compartments. We will talk about energy security, and the situation in the situation within the E.U. after the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty.
There are also other important elements. At the end of March, Moldova will attend the inauguration of the Eastern Partnership Parliamentary Assembly. In order to get a better position and to take advantage of this opportunity, it is very beneficial to have consultations with the countries that still have a fresh memory of their transition period before joining the E.U. In this regard, all of this experience will be useful to us.
Imedia: What exactly could countries like Hungary do to help Moldova join the European Union?
Igor Corman: There are already a few examples. Recently, Chisinau hosted Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius, who represents another country that has supported us very actively. Chisinau and Vilnius signed a statement during this visit, which made references to some concrete actions like training sessions for those who will negotiate and who will talk to our authorities, because the integration process is also a technical process.
There are some aspects that have to do with the implementation of European standards and, in order to have good expertise, we need to have negotiators and people who can monitor this quality process. In the legislative context, Lithuania has showed its willingness to organize programs, study visits, both for Moldovan legislators and for those who are working in Parliament.
This is a process that other European countries have gone through and, if Lithuania is helping, why not take advantage of the opportunities that other countries offer us, including Hungary. This good model that we have with Lithuania could very well reflect the one we could have with Hungary. Among others, another very sensitive aspect for our citizens is the liberalization of the visa regime. Here we need both political will and understanding within the E.U. because our arguments need to be heard. On the other hand, we need technical expertise that is necessary to reach a goal.
NOTE:
Hungary recognized Moldova's independence on December 30, 1991.
The two states established diplomatic ties in January 1992.
Budapest was one of the first countries to open a permanent embassy in Chisinau in July 1992.
Until now, the two states have signed 54 treaties. 37 of them are still in force, six have expired, and 11 are to become binding in the near future.
The first Moldovan President to visit Hungary was Mircea Snegur in April 1995. In February 2003, former President Vladimir Voronin visited Budapest. In October 1997, then-Hungarian President Arpad Göncz visited Chisinau.
In addition, throughout the years, there have been numerous mutual visits of speakers and prime ministers.
Hungary is one of the states that has always promoted closer ties between Moldova and the European Union.
In April 2008, for example, Foreign Ministers from the four Visegrad Group members - Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Poland - adopted a common statement pleading for closer ties between Chisinau and the E.U. and for the resolution of the Transnistrian conflict.
In October 2008, the Romanian and Hungarian Governments also signed a common statement pledging to support Moldova's and Ukraine's European aspirations.
In 2008, Hungary and France also launched the European Commission's Twining project that, among others, includes assistance for the harmonization of Moldovan legislature with the European Union's.
Moreover, Hungary has been coordinating and hosting the European Union Common Visa Center in Chisinau since April 2007. Moldovan citizens can now get visas for a number of countries with no embassies in Moldova, like Estonia, Iceland, Denmark, Austria, and so on.
In terms of economic ties, in the first 11 months of 2009 (the last data available), Hungary placed 15th among the countries where Moldova sent exports, which amounts to 11.7 million U.S. dollars.
When it comes to imports, Hungary placed 13, amounting to 47.9 million U.S. dollars.
During the same period, trade with Hungary fell 32 percent compared to the same period in 2008. According to experts, this drop was primarily caused by the global economic crisis.
