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Minister of Foreign Affairs Bogdan Aurescu received on Tuesday the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of the Government of the Republic of Moldova, Nicolae Popescu, in the context of the official visit to Bucharest by the President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, at the invitation of the Romanian President, Klaus Iohannis.
Prior to the meeting at the Foreign Affairs Ministry (MAE) headquarters, in the presence of the two presidents, the chief diplomats from Bucharest and Chisinau signed the Updated Roadmap on the priority areas of cooperation Romania - the Republic of Moldova - an essential document that represents the basis of the concrete future cooperation at bilateral level between Romania and the Republic of Moldova.
During the meeting, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the two ministers approached the main priorities of the bilateral agenda, based on the conclusions and directions of action established during the talks of the Presidents of Romania and the Republic of Moldova. At the same time, the concrete steps needed for the rapid and efficient implementation of the Updated Roadmap on priority areas of cooperation between Romania and the Republic of Moldova were discussed.
Minister Bogdan Aurescu stressed that Romania will remain "a consistent and sincere partner of the Republic of Moldova, deeply committed to the reform agenda and to Chisinau's European path". He pointed out that Romania has supported a wide and constant manner in the development and modernization of the Republic of Moldova, through actions for the direct benefit of its citizens. He also said that the areas of cooperation and actions set out in the Updated Roadmap are subsumed to the same consistent approach of the Romanian side.
At the same time, during the discussions, a special emphasis was given to the projects of interconnection of the transport infrastructure between the two countries, with emphasis on the consolidation and construction of new bridges, the project of abolishing roaming tariffs, as well as the efforts to strengthen the energy security of the Republic of Moldova, being discussed concrete ways of implementation.
The two ministers also discussed the preparation in the best conditions of the future joint government meeting Romania - Republic of Moldova, expected to be organized at the beginning of next year.
The Foreign ministers also had an exchange of evaluations about the security situation in the Black Sea area, as well as about the challenges to regional stability.
In this context, Minister Aurescu highlighted Romania's efforts to resolve the protracted conflicts and conveyed Romania's total support for a comprehensive, peaceful and lasting settlement of the Transnistrian file, respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova, within its internationally recognized borders and without affecting its European future. Also, the head of the Romanian diplomacy stressed the special importance of the "5+2" format, the only mechanism that is supported by the international community and which can generate a comprehensive regulation, for the benefit of the citizens from both banks of the Dniester.
