This was not the plan. This is not how it was supposed to happen! Romania, from its big brother position, was intent on acting as the main champion and “coach” to the Republic of Moldova so that the latter could swiftly and smoothly join the select club of the EU Member States. Moreover, some pundits even consider that Romania should have been what Western Germany was to Eastern Germany: a window of values and Western prosperity that inspires the Republic of Moldova to reform into a genuine democracy, rule of law and market economy. The unification should not be “of the hearts” but “of the minds”, of pragmatic thought, to quote Professor Dan Dungaciu.
That was a gross failure. Suffice it to cross the border from the Republic of Moldova into our Moldova to see that the differences for any traveller are minor. The lack of the tiniest development vision for the Moldova on our side made the incentives offered by Romania unconvincing, despite the fact that other economic areas, such as Bucharest, Western and Central Transylvania and a few more counties are growth hubs. Because the region of Moldova is the first point of contact with Romania of our brothers from across the Prut. And it does not look good.
At the same time, the lack of an aggregated integration plan for the Republic of Moldova caused the actions of various Romanian institutions there to be completely inappropriate. The faux-pas made by Romanian political parties in their attempt to find credible political partners on the longer term there, not associated with vested interests groups or suspected of unethical behavior. There is no point in giving money for kindergartens and school buses on the one hand and take your picture taken arm in arm with people with a dodgy reputation. There is no point in funding the Republic of Moldova`s deficits free of charge when there is no interest for the real beneficial owners of the money transfer. The message to the people over the Prut is a disaster: a shallow understanding of their realities and camping with the wrong side.
„The pile of failed projects in Bessarabia is enormous. The responsibilities here are huge and serious. Whether institutional or personal, it no longer matters. It is a failure that Romania has to live with. The lack of Romania`s presence in the Republic of Moldova, so as to become an essential party in any discussion, is Romania`s failure. Romania has not been able to gain a strong foothold in the Republic of Moldova, neither through its media, nor through investments, it did not manage to link the Republic of Moldova to the Romanian Moldova and then to Transylvania and the West.” said professor Dan Dungaciu to me once.
The driving force that Romanian success stories would have had towards integration is clearly suggested by the popularity enjoyed by the Romanian DNA [Anti-Corruption Agency] across the Prut. It is noteworthy that it was the only Romanian institution invited by the Moldovan civil society to “cross the Prut”. Unfortunately the invitation remained no more than that as the Moldovan institutions displayed a complete lack of appetite for alignment to the European standards of the independence of the judiciary that exists in Romania under the EU`s watchful eye.
Under these circumstances, the major institutional mismatches between Romania and Moldova endured without any strong sign that the gaps between the two states will be reduced. Among these the independence of the judiciary and first and foremost, the efficiency of the anti-corruption fight stand out. To which the economic take-off due to a market economy that has benefitted from significant foreign investments is added. This has made the suggestions by some politicians in Chisinau of a reverse accession process of Romania or part thereof to the Republic of Moldova and finally to the Customs Area that also includes some of the ex-Soviet states in exchange for the EU membership a laughable quirky proposal. Even more so that they hinted to an EU implosion.
The question is whether this is not where our smile freezes on our face.
The direction in which Romania seems to be heading is indeed the Republic of Moldova. By the way, at a time when the EU is unde the threat of a potential implosion. The gaps look smaller, but the pulling is in reverse. The one-man shadow rule in the Republic of Moldova is about to be replicated in Romania. The extreme social polarization in the neighboring country is set to be reproduced here as well through warmongering statements and lack of dialogue, compounded by the media. Magistrates` representative institutions, such as the Superior Council of Magistracy are being ignored and denigrated to a rather decorative role.
Slowly but surely Romania seems to be sliding into the grey area to join the Republic of Moldova. And yet … according to the Eurobarometer almost 60% of Romanians think that EU membership is a positive thing. An 11 % increase on last year seems to me synonymous with a cry of despair.
So, at the end of the day, whose interests does this “annexation” finally serve?
Have a nice weekend!
