In Moldova, thousands of citizens in a pro-European rally

2023-05-21 16:29:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Tens of thousands of people rallied in Moldova's capital, Chisinau, on May 21 in a show of support for closer ties with the European Union (EU), as the country's pro-European government continues to fight political undercurrents from Russia.

The police estimated that around 75,000 people have gathered, writes the editors of "Radio Free Europe" in English.

The rally, in which the president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, was also present, was organized a few days before the meeting of the European political community.

The meeting will be held on June 1 and it is expected that the president of Moldova, Maia Sandu, will receive the promise that her country will soon start negotiations for membership in the European Union.

The summit will be the first meeting of the 44-member group, which aims to improve cooperation between the EU and non-EU countries, including candidate countries in the Western Balkans and the Caucasus region.

Moldova, along with Ukraine, was invited to open EU membership negotiations in June last year, months after Russia began its invasion of Ukraine.

As one of the poorest countries in Europe, it has taken in hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees, along with growing concerns about the possible spread of the war.

Sandu, a former official of the World Bank, educated in the United States of America, came to power in November 2020, through the pro-reformist list.

She replaced Igor Dodo, the Moscow-backed socialist president whose tenure was rocked by economic crisis and corruption scandals.

Sandu's push for closer ties with the EU has worried Moscow, which continues to openly support some Moldovan political figures.

Moldova, at various times in its history, was part of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, as well as "Greater Romania". In March, the country's parliament declared Romanian the official language, although Russian is still widely used.

Many people were present at the Great People's Assembly, in the square of the same name in the capital Chisinau, including the declaration of independence from Soviet rule in 1991.

Moldova, like Ukraine, has formally applied for membership in the European Union, a process that usually takes years. However, its constitution establishes a policy of neutrality that excludes NATO membership.

The country is still burdened by the presence of the pro-Russian separatist region of Transnistria, 30 years after the brief war in which this region opposed the Moldovan army./REL