Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-05-03-Speech-3-186"
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"en.20000503.12.3-186"2
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"Mr President, the excellent report by our colleague, Mrs Matikainen-Kallström, on supplementary assistance for the budget of Moldova gives us a rare opportunity to cast our eyes on this small country on the periphery of the European Union, on its economic development and political orientation. The people once again find themselves living in poverty. The average monthly per capita income in Moldova is only approximately EUR 30. Privatisation is making only slow headway and so far the country has not managed to entirely resolve the problem of integrating its Russian minority groups. It has still not achieved monetary or budgetary stability and Russian occupation troops are still stationed in part of the country, in Trans-Dnestr.
For days now, there has been a very real risk of all the lights going out in Moldova. The Russian energy company Gazprom suspended gas supplies because Moldova could not pay its bills in German Marks and US dollars. So we are quite literally witnessing this country’s almost desperate fight for economic survival and political existence.
Geographically, Moldova is a narrow strip of land between Ukraine and Romania. Many young Moldovans are looking towards the European Union. Some are studying at our universities and technical colleges thanks to funding from the European Union and its Member States. At home, most of them want Moldova to become more open to the European Union. How can we, the European Parliament, make it easier for Moldova to become more open? The macro-economic financial assistance, which the Group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats firmly support, is an important step towards building up the necessary confidence in the Moldovan administration system and thereby consolidating its budget.
Moreover, the aid under the TACIS programmes must concentrate more on vocational training, education and improving the totally outmoded transport, communications and energy infrastructure. Small crafts and services businesses can only be started up if there are prospects of improving the framework conditions for competition and investment, which is only feasible in the long term with the help of the European Union. But Moldova must also know where it wants to go. Does it want to remain in a state of insecurity because it relies so heavily on cheap Russian raw materials, which it cannot even pay for yet, and also remain incapable of reform in many areas, which would mean tying its long-term future to the imponderables of Russian economic and social development? Or does it want to follow the example of Romania and resolutely tread the long and difficult road of economic reforms and closer cooperation with the European Union? In that case, it also deserves stronger support on our part. That support must be conditional on a radical modernisation of its economy and administration. We hope Moldova will opt for renewal and for Europe."@en1
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