APE staff

Excerpt from the radio program Moldovan Foreign Policy Debates” broadcasted on Radio Vocea Basarabiei, on August 30, and produced by the Foreign Policy Association (APE) in collaboration with Imedia News and Analysis Agency and with the assistance of the German Foundation Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES). The broadcast is aired on Radio Vocea Basarabiei every Sunday.

A ruling by Moldovas constitutional court on Thursday could clear the way for the former Soviet republic to form a western-leaning government after almost six months of political turmoil that began after contested elections in April failed to deliver a clear verdict.

Obviously every countrys transition from socialism to democracy had its unique set of models and circumstances (and many countries do not even pretent to be in transition”). All transitions are sui generis. At this stage Moldova is strengthening its break from the typically authoritarian post-Soviet governance models, and might be evolving towards the messier style of Central European politics in the 90s. It has no obvious Dzurinda who would accelerate and implement successfully a European reform agenda, and most importantly it does not have an EU accession perspective. Politics will almost inevitably be incredibly messy.

This book is an analytical publication which highlights the analysis of a new format of the EU policy in the East (concerning Ukraine, Georgia, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Moldova) and views on possibilities of this policy application for further process of the European integration of Ukraine, that is in bilateral dimension și full integration of Ukraine to the EU structures, and in multilateral dimension și development and en-hancement of regional cooperation between all the Eastern partners and the EU; as well as recommendations for using the Eastern Partnership possibilities.

Commentary by Victor Chirila, Executive Director ad-interim of the Foreign Policy Association of Moldova.

Interview with Mr. Vlad Lupan, independent expert and Mr. Igor Munteanu, Executive Director of the Institute for Development and Social Initiatives „IDIS - Viitorul”.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry released the following statement today in response to the historic election in the Republic of Moldova that may ultimately result in the unseating of the last governing Communist Party in the former Soviet Union

In order to send a clear signal of support for democratic tendencies and proeuropean attitude demonstrated by the Moldovan society as well as the political class, prior to the elections on 29 July 2009, Radosław SIKORSKI, the Polish Minister for Foreign Affairs is to undertake mission to the Republic of Moldova on 24 July 2009. This mission has been given full consent from the EU Swedish Presidency and the Greek OSCE chairmanship.

The overload/reset” button was at least somewhat pressed during the Obama-Tandem summit earlier this month, between the American president and the twin rulers of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin.

U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD), Chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (U.S. Helsinki Commission), made the following statement on the upcoming repeated elections in Moldova

Infotags exclusive interview with H.E. Excellency Mr. John Mitchell, Deputy Head of the British Embassy to Moldova.

The "Big Daddy" of U.S. Democratic Party politics in the 1960s and '70s, Jesse Unruh, had a wonderfully ribald saying about the role of money and influence in the business of government: "If you can't drink a lobbyist's whiskey, take his money, sleep with his women, and still vote against him in the morning, you don't belong in politics."

Experts say that the financial aid promised by Moscow to the authorities from Chisinau will allow filling in the gaps in the budget during the election campaign, but it will not solve the structural difficulties of Moldovan authorities and, additionally, Moscow pursues one goal și to drive Chisinau apart from the European project.