European Commission's Vice President reaffirms support for Moldova's European path

Executive Vice President of the European Commission for Technological Sovereignty, Security and Democracy Henna Virkkunen, on her first visit to Chisinau, has welcomed the progress made by Moldova in recent years in the fields of digitalization and information technology. She noted that these achievements played a quite important role in Moldova's European path, offering huge benefits both for citizens and the business environment.

"The European Union confirms its commitment to continue close collaboration with Moldova, supporting the country on its European path and digitalization and communications play a quite important role on this way, providing huge benefits to both citizens and the business environment," said Henna Virkkunen. Today, she held a press conference in Chisinau with Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economic Development and Digitalization Doina Nistor.

Henna Virkkunen noted that she had discussed with Doina Nistor particularly about digitalization and technology, areas in which, according to the official, Moldova had made progress in recent years.

The Executive Vice President of the European Commission also emphasized the need to strengthen resilience in the context of cyberattacks, noting that they "are a major concern for the European Union, as well as for Moldova."

"Cyberattacks, any kind of foreign interference, are a major concern for the European Union, as well as for Moldova. We all face massive cyberattacks. For this reason, it is so important to take care of critical infrastructure, services and all electronic processes," said Henna Virkkunen.

At the same time, the official assured that the EU would provide Moldova with support, emphasizing the need to ensure the security of the parliamentary elections due in next autumn.

"We are fully committed to supporting the security of the upcoming elections in   Moldova, strengthening reserves for the Cybersecurity Center. We have already assisted Moldova in preparing resilience programmes, in order to cope with any type of cyberattacks. We have also supported rapid response teams, in order to respond quickly to cyberattacks. We are also pleased to announce that Moldova's access to the European Union's cybersecurity reserves has now been confirmed by the Council. We will ensure that any procurement procedures for cybersecurity services are facilitated and Moldova will be able to request this kind of assistance from service providers, in order to respond to any cybersecurity incidents," emphasized Henna Virkkunen.

For her part, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economic Development and Digitalization Doina Nistor said that the European Union had been and remained a reliable partner for Moldova and digital integration is the fastest and most tangible way to truly become part of Europe.

"Moldova maintains its status as a regional leader in technology and IT and this commitment is reflected in each decision, reform and strategic partnership we build," specified Doina Nistor.

The deputy PM announced the initiation of discussions to create an AI excellence hub, or so-called AI antenna in Moldova, which will be connected to the European network of AI centers and factories.

"Why is this necessary? Because we need advanced technology in strategic industries, agriculture, medicine, but also in government systems. The AI antenna will operate on the platform of the future Moldova Hightech Park, hosted by universities, available for students, researchers, entrepreneurs and companies," said the official.

At the same time, Doina Nistor informed that the process of mutual recognition of electronic signatures with the European Union had been initiated.

"Moldova has recognized the European Union's electronic signatures since 2021, and in next autumn, we will adjust Moldova's electronic signature to EU standards. This is another important step for those over 300,000 active users of the electronic signature. As of July, Moldova has already been included in the European trust list of electronic signature providers. This ultimately means that any digitally signed contract in Moldova will be legally valid in the European Union. This is great news for our companies, for trade, investments and cross-border collaborations," said the deputy prime minister.

Executive Vice President for Technological Sovereignty, Security and Democracy of the European Commission Henna Virkkunen pays her first visit to Moldova today. The agenda includes meetings with President Maia Sandu and Prime Minister Dorin Recean. Also, the EU official will discuss the fight against disinformation and hybrid attacks at in meetings with representatives of the Central Electoral Commission, the Audiovisual Council and the Center for Strategic Communication and Combatting Disinformation in Moldova.