Cristina Gherasimov for MOLDPRES: 2027 decisive for EU accession. Moldova could close negotiations on 25 chapters

The Republic of Moldova could close accession negotiations with the European Union on 25 of the 33 chapters during 2027, if it demonstrates commitment and implements the necessary reforms. The statement was made by Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration Cristina Gherasimov exclusively to MOLDPRES, on the sidelines of the annual Conference on European Union enlargement, held in Chișinău.


“The European Commission has shown its openness to closing accession negotiations with our country during 2027. We can already close negotiations on 25 of the 33 chapters next year if we demonstrate commitment and carry out the necessary reforms. This is what this historic moment means for our country. Until now, we had been talking about opening negotiations; now we are concretely discussing closing accession negotiations on specific chapters,” Cristina Gherasimov told MOLDPRES.




The Deputy Prime Minister explained that, after negotiations on all 33 chapters have been closed, the Republic of Moldova will move on to the next stage, which involves finalizing the draft Accession Treaty and signing it.

Gherasimov made the clarifications in the context of statements by President Maia Sandu and European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos, who said that 2027 would be a “crucial” year for the Republic of Moldova’s EU accession process.




“I want to tell you that 2026 has not yet ended; we are expecting a lot of positive news. We expect the European Council to give the green light to open the two remaining clusters. The European Commission is currently finalizing the positive assessment of the benchmarks for these criteria. Reference has been made to democratic institutions and the strengthening of the reform process. This remains an important aspect. We want to move towards closing the negotiation chapters, and this makes 2027, exactly as the President of the Republic of Moldova also mentioned, a crucial year for delivering results,” Marta Kos said at the conference.


Cristina Gherasimov noted that today’s meeting is dedicated to assessing the progress achieved by the country and the recommendations made by the European Commission in the enlargement package for the following year. These will be incorporated into the National Accession Programme, which will establish the necessary actions based on the complexity and implementation timeframe of each recommendation.

At the same time, the Deputy Prime Minister emphasized that the pace of the accession process depends primarily on the efforts of the Republic of Moldova, as well as on the political context in the country and in the European Union member states.


“Everything depends on the Republic of Moldova, on how hard we work and on what the political situation will be in our country, but also in the 27 member states, because the Republic of Moldova does not make the decision. The Republic of Moldova has a duty to be prepared, because without the technical foundation for preparation there is no basis for a political decision by the 27 member states, while the decision on closing the negotiations rests exclusively with the 27 states,” the official said.


Referring to the economic situation, Cristina Gherasimov noted that the difficulties are not being felt only in the Republic of Moldova, but also in the region and throughout the European Union. In this context, she highlighted the support provided by the member states, including through the 1.9-billion-euro Growth Plan for the Republic of Moldova, which aims to stimulate the economy and strengthen the main pillars of development.

The Deputy Prime Minister expressed hope that the Republic of Moldova’s economy would record stronger growth next year.



The annual Conference on European Union enlargement, 2026 Enlargement Package: Advancing EU Accession Negotiations through Reform, Dialogue, Transparency and Social Cohesion, is taking place in Chișinău on November 9-10. The event was opened by President of the Republic of Moldova Maia Sandu and European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos. The conference brings together representatives of national authorities, European institutions, EU member states, civil society and media. MOLDPRES news agency is a media partner of the event.

According to the organizers, more than 700 participants registered for the event, while 70 speakers will contribute to the discussions taking place over the two days.