Visa-Free Regime: International and Moldovan Experience
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MOLDOVA STATE UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, POLITICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE SCIENCES LABORATORY OF POLITICAL SOCIOLOGY VISA-FREE REGIME: INTERNATIONAL AND MOLDOVAN EXPERIENCE Coord. Professor Valeriu MOSNEAGA CHIȘINĂU - 2019 CZU 351.756:[327(4+478):061.1EU](082) V-67 Descrierea CIP a Camerei Naţionale a Cărţii Visa-free regime: international and moldovan experience / Moldova State Univ., Fac. of Intern. Relations, Polit. and Administrative Sci., Lab. of Polit. Sociology; coord.: Valeriu Mosneaga. – Chişinău: CEP USM, 2019. – 190 p.: fig., tab. Referinţe bibliogr. la sfârşitul art. – 150 ex. ISBN 978-9975-149-70-9. 351.756:[327(4+478):061.1EU](082) V-67 ISBN 978-9975-149-70-9 © Valeriu MOSNEAGA, 2019 © USM, 2019 SUMMARY Introduction 5 I. VISA-FREE REGIME: THE THEORY AND CONTEMPORARY INTERNATIONAL PRACTICE 7 Turco T. Migration without borders and visa-free regime 7 Cebotari S., The political-legal framework of the European Union Budurin-Goreacii C. on the visa-free regime 26 Svetlicinii R. Visa-free regime in the post-soviet space 39 Kostic M., Place and meaning of the visa liberalization process Prorokovic D. and further emigration from the Western Balkan 48 Ivashchenko-Stadnik K., Visa-free regime between Ukraine and the EU: Sushko I. assessing the dynamics of the first two years through statistics and public opinion data 65 Matsaberidze M. Georgia: the problems and challenges of the visa-free regime with the EU 76 Mosneaga V. Moldova, Georgia, Ukraine and the EU visa-free regime 82 Mosneaga V., Belarus and the EU visa-free regime 106 Mosneaga Gh. II. VISA-FREE REGIME WITH EU: CASE STUDY – THE REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA 117 Putină N. Liberalization of the visa regime between the Republic of Moldova with the EU – achievements and prospects 117 Iatco M. Benefits and costs of the visa liberalized regime from the perspective of the dynamics of the european integration of the Republic of Moldova 132 Turcan V., Visa-free regime between the Republic of Moldova Mosneaga V., and the European Union in the context of the Mosneaga Gh., migration mobility of the Moldovan population 144 Turco E. Turco T., The problem of illegal migration in a visa-free regime Turco E. (case study of the Republic of Moldova) 164 Cretu M. Mass Media use and the attitudes of Moldovan citizens towards the visa-free regime with the European Union 179 3 INTRODUCTION Dear readers! The following publication is dedicated to the visa-free regime. The visa-free regime is the contemporary realization of the centuries-old dream of people’s free movement around the world. The more difficult the process of border crossing, of entry and exit in human migration would become, the more people dreamed this freedom. The visa- free regime today has become an every-day practice in international relations; it has a direct effect on international migration. The visa-free regime characterizes people’s movement not only between two states, but between different groups/ communities of states. The visa-free regime today is a reality for the Republic of Moldova. It possesses a visa-free regime within the framework of both the Commonwealth of Independent State and the European Union. The authors of this collection have made it their goal to conduct a complex analysis of the visa-free regime phenomenon, to analyze the global and national practices of visa-free regime implementation, to uncover the particularities of obtaining and using the EU visa-free regime by the Republic of Moldova. In the first half of this article the authors are analyzing the theory and practice of the visa-free regime in the European Union and in post-Soviet space (the CIS); the reasons and interests of states to introduce a visa-free regime are uncovered; identified are the multiple consequences of “a world without borders”, of the visa-free regime, of its use in international relations, in solving of political, socio-economic, cultural and educational issues, of the realization of human rights and freedoms. In the presented articles, the authors are analyzing and identifying the general and particular aspects of achieving and introducing the visa-free regime by a number of European states that neighbor the European Union (the Balkan states, the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine, and Georgia). The researchers are drawing attention to the fact that the European Union views visa-free regime granting as the implementation of the democratic modernization project of societal transformations in the beneficiary-countries. Investigating the experience of Belarus in obtaining the visa-free regime, one can see the presence of other pursuits – the realization of solely a tourist/ economic project that is aimed at achieving democratic and modernizing goals to a lesser extent. The authors are uncovering the positive and negative effects of EU visa-free regime introduction with the west-Balkan countries, and the Eastern Partnership countries, which have been identified during the implementation process. Among the positive effects they point out the increased levels of international migration, the improvement of human dignity of citizens that are employing the visa-free regime; consolidation of human rights in migration processes, the increasing value and importance of national passports of the states that have received the EU visa-free regime; the improvement of migration policy, development of measures for counteracting illegal/ irregular 5 migration. Identified at the same time were negative effects tied to the increase of illegal migration, attempts by economic migrations to pass off as refugees and asylum- seekers (“pseudo-refugees”). The visa-free regime does not lead to the exhaustion of a country’s demographic and professional potential for development, instead, often contributing to its growth. In the second half of the offered collection of articles the authors are analyzing the experience of the Republic of Moldova on improving and introducing the visa-free regime. The main stages and actions of Moldovan authorities to obtain the EU visa-free regime are uncovered. The EU visa-free regime with the Republic of Moldova is viewed in the context of the country’s policy for European integration, the main/ baseline documents that dictate the implementation of the process for obtaining the EU visa- free regime are analyzed. A significant place in the analysis of the Moldovan practice of visa-free regime implementation is given to highlighting the Republic of Moldova’s public opinion over a large number of issues tied to the use of the visa-free regime by the population of the republic of Moldova. The authors are analyzing the changes in the Moldovan population’s migration strategies and plans before and after 2014, the year the EU visa- free regime was implemented. A standalone article is dedicated to the analysis of illegal migration of the Moldovan population into the European Union, to identifying the general and particular aspects of this process compared to Europe’s other developing countries. The authors are uncovering the changes / modifications of individual group attitudes and practices manifested by illegal migrants before and after the implementation of the visa-free regime. Likewise, within the collection of scientific articles there is material dedicated to the analysis of the main techniques and methods of the mass-media of the Republic of Moldova for the highlighting of the topics of migration and the EU visa-free regime. The authors are making wide use in their articles of statistical materials, results of empirical sociological research, of scientific literature, of materials from both printed and electronic publications of the Republic of Moldova and of other countries whose populations are using the possibilities of the EU visa-free regime. The collection is meant for a wide audience that is interested in the implementation of the EU visa-free regime with Moldova, and with other countries in particular. The presented materials can be widely used in scientific research. They will likewise serve as a good support in the educational process when studying the various aspects of European integration and the visa-free regime practice. 6 I. VISA-FREE REGIME: THE THEORY AND CONTEMPORARY INTERNATIONAL PRACTICE MIGRATION WITHOUT BORDERS AND VISA-FREE REGIME Tatiana TURCO Republic of Moldova, Chisinau, Moldavian State University, Faculty of International Relations, Political and Administrative Sciences, Department of Political and Administrative Sciences PhD (Political Science), Associate Professor E-mail: [email protected] In recent years, the international scientific community has wondered: Is it possible to create a world without borders? If so, what needs to be done for this and what will be the consequences? The result of this was the appearance of the “migration without borders” scenario, which consists of the fact that the possibility of unrestricted movement around the world allows a person to fully realize their fundamental right to freedom of movement. This scenario may be implemented in the distant future, but it can serve as a source stimulating the development of new solutions to existing problems. At the regional level, one of the steps towards an open border society is a visa-free regime of the European Union with the countries of the Western Balkans and the Eastern Partnership. This regime provides important benefits for citizens and strengthens social, cultural and economic ties between the EU and its partners. In case of increased risks, the European Union may introduce a mechanism for suspending a visa-free regime, but so far it has not been applied. The Republic of Moldova acquired a visa-free regime with the EU in 2014. Five years after the liberalization of the visa regime, European institutions are concerned about deviations from democratic standards and the rule of law, which may lead to suspension of the visa-free regime. According to the author, the new government should make every effort to solve the above mentioned problems so that Moldovan citizens would continue to be able to freely move around Europe.