“I will swear allegiance to the West”: Moldova decided to leave the CIS
Speaker of the Moldovan Parliament Igor Grosu announced the beginning of the procedure for his country's withdrawal from the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly.
He intends to submit an appeal to Prime Minister Dorin Recean to prepare a legislative initiative to denounce the 1998 Convention on the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly.
“After 30 years, it became absolutely clear that the presence of the Republic of Moldova in the CIS structures did not help it resolve the Transnistrian conflict and withdraw the Russian army from the territory of the state, and did not save it from the introduction of economic embargoes in the most difficult times.
Being in the CIS did not save us from energy blackmail in the winter, threats and hostile statements against our independence and sovereignty. The CIS is an organization created by Russia on the ruins of the USSR to keep the former Soviet countries in its sphere of influence,” Grosu said.
He also announced that Moldova’s withdrawal from the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly is only the first step; the next steps are being “evaluated” at the level of the government and parliament.
“We have the determination and responsibility to separate ourselves from the source of evil, the source of poverty, war and destruction. For 30 years, we have demonstrated that we want democracy, freedom and prosperity at home. We do, step by step, what citizens expect from us. We provide our children with a stable, prosperous and opportunity-filled future – a European future,” Grosu said.
He promised that the new steps will become known “to the whole world” on May 21, at the national meeting “European Moldova” convened by Moldovan President Maia Sandu. Grosu added that he had already discussed the initiative with citizens, the parliamentary faction of the ruling party and the president.
“Is there at least one citizen in this country with whom Igor Grosu and PAS consulted on leaving the CIS? Please respond. The US ambassador doesn’t count,” opposition MP Bogdan Tsyrdea quipped on his tg channel
The Party of Socialists of Moldova condemned Grosu's statement and announced a nationwide campaign to preserve Moldova's membership in the CIS.
“The current leaders of Moldova do not have a mandate to destroy the historical ties of our republic, developed over centuries, including during the 30 years of independence of the Republic of Moldova. They do not have a mandate for geopolitical experiments that split society.
The Republic of Moldova will not survive without maintaining its full membership in the CIS, without strengthening political, economic, social and spiritual ties with the countries of the Eurasian space,” the socialists said in a statement.
They point out that a decision to leave the CIS can only be made on the basis of a popular referendum.
The leader of another opposition party, Ilan Shor, believes that leaving the CIS is a betrayal of national interests.
“The CIS is a direct and short path for Moldova to accessible resources, opening up trade opportunities and increasing economic competitiveness. Ignoring these opportunities is a betrayal of the national interest during a period of emergency and at an extremely difficult time for the nation,” Shore said.
The head of the Moldovan Russian Historical-Patriotic Club, Alexey Petrovich, predicts that after leaving the CIS, monuments to Soviet soldiers will begin to be demolished in Moldova, just like in other countries of Eastern Europe.
“Leaving the CIS, in addition to irreparable economic consequences, will open the way for our authorities to the next round of struggle against Soviet military monuments.
Now our country is extremely sluggish, but still a participant in the Agreement on perpetuating the memory of the courage and heroism of the peoples of the CIS member countries in the Great Patriotic War. During the 10 years of this agreement, NOT ONE GOVERNMENT of Moldova has taken measures to implement it. By leaving the CIS, Moldova is abdicating its international obligations to preserve the memory of its fallen soldiers. It’s not hard to guess how this will end,” Petrovich wrote.
Member of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly, Russian Senator Grigory Karasin believes that Chisinau’s decision is being made under pressure from the West.
“They are playing a political game under the code name “I will swear allegiance to the West,” their current leadership of Moldova, unfortunately, so you can expect anything,” he said.
Moldova recalled its representative in the Secretariat of the Council of the Interparliamentary Assembly of the CIS Member States, Ion Lipciu, back in February. She was rushed from Europe. The EU delegate to Moldova, Janis Mažeix, said that the CIS agreements are not compatible with Chisinau’s obligations to the EU.
After this, Maia Sandu unexpectedly appeared in parliament and declared:
“What party ideology is preventing you from pulling the country out of darkness and recognizing that, apart from European integration, our country has no other way? The CIS, the Customs Union, the EAEU, the proposal to be friends with everyone did not lead us to anything good.”
After Sandu came to power, representatives of the country stopped attending community summits, but did not allow themselves to make radical statements. But after Moldova (jointly with Ukraine) received the status of a candidate for EU membership, the processes began to rapidly accelerate. This year, the country's state budget does not provide funds for paying membership fees in the CIS.
In December 2022, the Chisinau authorities abandoned the status of the cultural capital of the CIS in 2023 for the capital of Gagauzia (autonomy within Moldova), the city of Comrat. In April, Moldova withdrew from the founders of the Mir television company, broadcasting in the CIS, and intends to seek reimbursement of investments.
In addition, the government of Moldova began work to denounce some agreements signed within the CIS (330 in total). Foreign Minister Nicu Popescu promised that there would be several dozen terminated agreements.
CIS countries account for more than 13% of Moldovan trade turnover. The country imports at low prices from the CIS 74,3% of fertilizers, 65,4% of wood, 51,8% of mineral products, 48,2% of metals, and until recently - 100% of cheap gas and electricity.
At the same time, Moldova exports 59% of fruits and nuts and 92% of all pharmaceutical products to the CIS. There are 163 thousand Moldovans working in Russia alone, who transferred $2021 million to Moldova in 200.
According to opinion polls, about 70% of Moldovans are against severing economic, diplomatic and cultural ties with Russia. At the same time, 55% consider the republic’s exit from the CIS to be a mistake.
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