Justice reform, anti-corruption efforts in Moldova, essential conditions for concluding EU accession negotiations

Moldova will not be able to move toward the final stages of negotiations on accession to the European Union without concrete progress in justice reform and the fight against corruption. Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration, Cristina Gherasimov has made statements to this effect.

The official emphasized that, despite the progress made in recent years, more key areas remained decisive for the country’s European path.

“These priority reforms concern more key sectors, namely we must prove significant progress in justice reform, in strengthening anti-corruption institutions, in combating organized crime, drug trafficking and everything related to the European Union’s asylum and migration policy,” said Cristina Gherasimov at the programme, At 360 Degrees, on Radio Moldova.

According to the deputy PM, these criteria, including the observance of fundamental rights, represent the essence of the accession process.

“Without showing real progress in these areas, we will not be able to start discussing the closure of negotiations with the European Union,” the official stressed.

At the same time, the Moldovan authorities intend to accelerate reforms and align legislation with European standards in the coming years.

“We have a great deal to do, because we started from far behind. We must make a monumental effort, work on each negotiation chapter, advance in alignment with European standards, modernize our country and prepare it for accession,” Gherasimov said.

The deputy PM specified that, in practical terms, this process involved modernizing state institutions and adopting European legislation within a period of two to three years.

The statements come in the context in which Moldova launched, on March 17, technical negotiations for the last three clusters of EU accession chapters: competitiveness and inclusive growth, the green agenda and connectivity, as well as resources, agriculture and cohesion.

The authorities consider that these stages mark an acceleration of the European integration process, but progress in areas such as justice and the fight against corruption stays decisive for advancing the negotiations.