The Republic of Moldova opens negotiations with the EU at the fourth Intergovernmental Conference in Luxembourg

The Republic of Moldova is taking another step in its accession process to the European Union. The fourth Republic of Moldova–EU Intergovernmental Conference is taking place in Luxembourg, where negotiations will be opened on two new clusters of chapters covering the internal market and competitiveness.

The announcement was made by European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos ahead of the meeting of the EU General Affairs Council. According to her, the Union will open two clusters of negotiating chapters each with the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine.

For the Republic of Moldova, the discussions concern Cluster 2 – “Internal Market” and Cluster 3 – “Competitiveness and Inclusive Growth.” All 27 member states approved the convening of the conference one day before the meeting in Luxembourg.

The conference is scheduled to begin at 21:00 Moldova time. A joint press conference is scheduled for one hour later, with the participation of Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration Cristina Gherasimov, Marta Kos and Irish Minister for European Affairs Thomas Byrne.

Marta Kos stressed that EU enlargement must be accompanied by reforms and stronger mechanisms to protect the rule of law. At the same time, candidate countries will be included in the European Centre for Democratic Resilience.