Regional cooperation
Moldova regrets sale of arms to Armenia, says it was ‘wrong political move’ Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova Vladmir Filat acknowledged that the sale of arms to Armenia was a wrong political move and apologized to President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Moldova’s Ambassador in Baku Igor Bodiu told 1news.az. The diplomat stated that Chișinău really did sell $3 million USD worth of weapons to Armenia, and called this fact a “wrong political move”. At the same time, he stressed that “there are no international sanctions prohibiting the sale of arms to Armenia”. “Both Moldova and Azerbaijan are members of GUAM and we hope that this fact will not damage our relations. Moldova has set up two commissions which are investigating the incident. Once again let me say, it was the wrong political move,” said Bodiu. Moldnews recalls that earlier Vlad Filat said he knew nothing of the sale of missile and artillery systems to Armenia – despite the fact that his signature is on the sale documents. Epress.am [en], 26 October 2011
Promoting cross-border cooperation between Ukraine and Moldova: Joint Border Control Operation successfully concludes with support of EUBAM
29-09-2011
Operation AKKERMAN, a Joint Border Control Operation undertaken by EUBAM, has enabled Moldovan and Ukrainian agencies to identify several illegal migration channels and contraband cases. This annual initiative aims at promoting cross border cooperation between Ukrainian, Moldovan and international law enforcement agencies in the detection of smuggled items and other illicit cross-border activity.
This second operational phase of the initiative, undertaken by EUBAM for the 8th time, successfully concluded in Odessa last week. This year’s operation AKKERMAN was carried out in two phases, from 10-21 May and 12-25 September, and involved representatives from international agencies such as EUROPOL, FRONTEX, INTERPOL and OLAF. The participation of experts from German, Italian and Polish law-enforcement agencies was of utmost importance for intelligence gathering and analysis, as it enabled access to information from EU agencies.
Throughout this operation, officers were guided by the European Criminal Intelligence Model concept. This intelligence-led targeted approach enabled Moldovan and Ukrainian agencies to identify several illegal migration channels and contraband cases, as well as related modi operandi.
AKKERMAN 2011 garnered substantial success, gaining national and international recognition and enhancing the profile of the agencies involved on the international stage.
The EU Border Assistance Mission to Moldova and Ukraine (EUBAM) contributes to the delivery of good quality border and customs services to the citizens and companies of Moldova, Ukraine and the European Union. Together with border guard and customs services of Moldova and Ukraine the Mission facilitates people-to-people contacts, legitimate trade and security. (ENPI Info Centre) Putin has no one to count on in Moldova, Russian newspaper writes Svetlana Gamova for Nezavisimaya Gazeta
On whom is Putin counting in Moldova, where Russia is planning a new stage in mutual relations? This question is being asked in Chisinau on the eve of the presidential election scheduled for 18 November. If the deputies are unable to elect a head of state in three attempts, parliament will be dissolved and Moldovans will be left without a president and without a parliament until spring. Prime Minister Vlad Filat, with whom Moscow prefers to do business already today, will be the country's chief administrator. Ordinary Moldovan citizens as well as representatives of business have listed the opening of the Russian market to Moldovan wine as one of Filat's assets. It is well known that last week Vlad Filat raised this question in St Petersburg during a meeting with Vladimir Putin, and the next day the problem was solved.
Before that Rospotrebnadzor [Federal Service for the Supervision of Consumer Rights and Welfare] had more than once prohibited the import of wine from Moldova into the RF because of the presence of harmful contaminants in it. Now this obstacle to the Moldovan export of wine to Russia has been eliminated, which is appreciated by entrepreneurs and those voters who are hoping for new jobs. But the director of the Chisinau Institute of European Studies, Viorel Chibotaru, noted to NG that Moldovan politicians have met Filat's initiative with bayonets. "Lupu (acting president of Moldova, Marian Lupu - NG) and Voronin (leader of the communists, ex-President Vladimir Voronin - NG) ganged up against Filat because of his meeting with Putin. Both of them had at one time gone to Moscow and asked for its support. I would not say that Putin is counting on Filat, since he is the most promising figure for negotiations," the expert said to NG. In his opinion, it is still too e! arly to say who will become Moldova's president. No one will be elected in the upcoming elections in parliament since neither side - the alliance For European Integration or the opposition Party of Communists - will get the necessary 61 votes (of 101), Chibotaru believes. And they will hardly come to an agreement on a compromise figure. Should this be the case, parliament will be dissolved and elections for it will take place in the spring. One should not expect that they will bring significant changes in the existing disposition of parliamentary forces, an opinion held not only by Viorel Chibotaru, but by other political analysts and politicians.
The chairman of the People's Assembly of the Gagauz Autonomy in southern Moldova, Anna Kharlamenko, told NG that it was nominating the autonomy's bashkan (head), Mikhail Formuzala, as a presidential candidate; he also heads the Party of Regions. In the opinion of the Gagauz speaker, if the leaderships of the parties that belong to the republican parliament are unable to agree on a compromise figure, the country will not emerge from the crisis it has been in for two years already. Reelections to parliament will not save the situation, since the current disposition of political forces will not change. New, future parties are not foreseen on the horizon, and the same voters will vote for the old ones as before. Then the same four parties will again be present in the new parliament, none of which will obtain a majority. It will be necessary to create a coalition, and here again there may be surprises.
There is increasing talk in Moldova about a possible bonding of communists and liberal democrats, the leader of whom is Vlad Filat. "If the election of Filat as president is a result of an agreement between Filat and Voronin, it will, of course, make Filat the most persistent and unchangeable Moldovan politician for the next four years. But if the price that has to be paid for this is Voronin's return to power, the long-term losses for Filat may turn out to be catastrophic. After four years of a presidency which became possible thanks to an alliance with Voronin, Filat may end up without a party and without power," the editor of the C hisinau publication Panorama, Dmitriy Chubashenko, believes. He does not rule out that Filat may become president as a result of an agreement between the two parties, and ex-President Vladimir Voronin will become speaker of parliament. One should note that the Party of Communists represents the largest faction in parliament, and ! today's opponents will fight for its votes.
But for now the ruling alliance - For European Democracy - to which the Liberal, Liberal- Democratic and Democratic Parties belong, is nominating a single candidate as president - parliament speaker Marian Lupu. The communists and recently Vlad Filat are opposed to him. Lupu himself is suggesting to all factions, including the communists, that they sit behind the negotiating table and try to come to an agreement. He said that he is ready to become the single candidate for president from the ruling alliance if it will help unblock the situation over the election of a new Moldovan president.
We note that Moldova has already been without an elected president for more than two years. In the last 11 years, a president has been elected in Moldova twice, and both times it was Vladimir Voronin - in 2000 and 2005. Since 2009, because no president was elected, two sittings of parliament were dissolved. The last early parliamentary elections in Moldova took place on 28 November 2010. Nezavisimaya Gazeta, 25 October 2011
Read the original article in Russian: “Путину в Молдавии ставить не на кого”