Justice Minister Veronica Mihailov-Moraru on a working visit to Brussels
28 September 2023, Chisinau – Minister of Justice Veronica Mihailov-Moraru is on a two-day working visit to Brussels, where she has planned several meetings and discussions with officials of European institutions. Her aim is to report on the state of implementation of justice reform and the measures to be taken by the justice sector in the nine conditions of the European Commission’s Opinion, in the context of the Commission’s Enlargement Report this autumn.
During yesterday’s meeting, the Minister of Justice, Veronica Mihailov-Moraru, met with the European Commissioner for Justice, Didier Reynders, and the Director-General of the Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers of the European Commission, Ana Gallego Torres. Discussions focused on the progress of the implementation of the pre-vetting and vetting processes, the formation of the Superior Council of Magistracy and the Superior Council of Prosecutors, the efforts in the implementation of anti-corruption measures and the strengthening of the capacities of the institutions responsible for fighting corruption, the level of implementation of the actions of the deoligarchisation plan, as well as the challenges encountered.
During the meeting, Veronica Mihailov-Moraru expressed the interest of the Chisinau authorities to join the European Programmes: JUST – for Justice, and CERV – Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values. The minister also discussed with European officials new instruments and possibilities for cooperation and assistance in the process of harmonization of legislation in the field of justice, already as a candidate state. In this regard, the topic of the prospect of Moldova’s inclusion in the EU Rule of Law Reports was discussed.
On developments in the justice sector, Minister Mihailov-Moraru communicated with the Director-General for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, Gert-Jan Koopman. Details of each stage in the implementation of EU conditionality and Moldova’s commitments to justice reform were reviewed, as well as the immediate priorities to be achieved in ensuring the irreversibility of the reforms.
Minister Veronica Mihailov-Moraru also met with Ramona Strugariu, Vice-President of the Moldova-EU Parliamentary Association Committee, and Dragoș Tudorache, Rapporteur for the Republic of Moldova in the European Parliament. The MEPs reaffirmed their support for the reforms being promoted and urged the Moldovan Government to ensure a steady pace of these processes. The Minister of Justice also discussed with the European officials the actions that need to be prioritised and which are also on the European Parliament’s agenda.
