First step to free trade accord

Moldova and the European Union concluded negotiations on June 12, on a free trade agreement, reports Timpul. The daily hails the outcome of discussions which were threatened by the political instability that has rocked the former Soviet republic, which is a candidate for EU accession, as the first success for Iurie Leanca’s pro-European administration.

The agreement “will be signed at the Vilnius Eastern Partnership summit to be held in November 2013, and most likely come into force in 2014,” reports the Moldovan daily, which enthusiastically outlines the advantages of plans —

… for integration in a wider economic area, the progressive liberalisation of trade in goods and services, the free circulation of labour, reduced customs tariffs, and the abolition of quotas… which take into account objections from farmers, who are wary of a possible reduction in their competitiveness.

In contrast, former president and pro-Russian opposition leader, Vladimir Voronine, described the accord as “a catastrophe that will close the door on Russia and Ukraine.”