Moldova denounces Commonwealth of Independent States agreement on cooperation in information field

Moldova will denounce the Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Information, signed in Bishkek on October 9, 1992 within the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The government today approved the decision to withdraw from the document, justifying the move by the need to strengthen the information security and protect the national information space.

At the cabinet meeting, Culture Minister Dan Suruceanu has said that, although the agreement was intended to facilitate the exchange of information and to develop cooperation between the signatory states, some of the mechanisms it provides for no longer correspond to the current context.

“Although the agreement aims to facilitate the free exchange of information and the development of cooperation in the field of information, some of the mechanisms it sets out, including the ones relating to the free dissemination of information and cooperation between the information structures of the states parties, can be used, in the current regional conditions, as instruments of informational influence and of spreading manipulative or disinformation narratives. In the context, maintaining participation in the treaty may generate vulnerabilities in relation to the objectives of strengthening information security and protecting the national information space,” the culture minister specified.

The Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Information provided for cooperation between member states with regard to the exchange of information and interaction between their information structures.

According to the decision approved by the government, the denunciation of the document is made in accordance with the provisions of the Law on International Treaties of Moldova. After the decision is published in the Official Journal, the Foreign Affairs Ministry will send the official notification to the CIS Executive Committee.

The decision is part of the process of reviewing international agreements concluded under the CIS framework and of adjusting Moldova’s legal framework to the new priorities in the foreign policy and information security.