Moldovan, Swedish officials broach bilateral relations

Chisinau, 6 October /MOLDPRES/- Deputy Prime Minister Nicu Popescu, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration and OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde had a bilateral meeting in the morning after which they made press statements, noting that bilateral relations between the two states are excellent.

Popescu said that at the meeting three topics were discussed: the bilateral relations between the two states, the dimension of the integration of the Republic of Moldova in the EU and discussions on the settlement of the Transnistrian dispute. Referring to the bilateral relations between the two states, the Moldovan official said that "relations are excellent, Sweden is one of the states that helped the Republic of Moldova in difficult times." "Due to Sweden's efforts in promoting and implementing the Eastern Partnership, the Moldovan state is much more anchored in the European Union than ten years ago," Popescu said.

At the same time, the Minister referred to the discussions on the subject of Transnistrian settlement, stating that "the Republic of Moldova regards this regulation within the territorial integrity of the Moldovan state, respecting human rights, withdrawing foreign military forces and destroying ammunition stored in the region."

Ann Linde confirmed that bilateral relations are excellent. "I am in Chisinau in a double capacity, the one of the acting president of the OSCE and I will also have meetings with the leaders from the Transnistrian region. As Minister of Foreign Affairs, I came to reconfirm to the new Cabinet of Ministers the support of Sweden for the efforts of the Moldovan state for European integration ", said Linde.

The Swedish official noted that as a promoter of the Eastern Partnership, Sweden is looking forward to the organization's summit in December. "We want the European Union and the Republic of Moldova to move forward. For this reason, we decided to give a strong signal in this regard ", Linde said.