President Traian Basescu: we will advocate for Moldova's European vocation without expecting anything in return

I refused to answer the challenges from the Moldovan authorities in the past weeks, but we cannot hold our silence forever, Romania’s President Traian Basescu declared on Tuesday, in front of the Parliament.

Follow his main declarations in the article.

Here are some of the most important declarations:

• it is our moral duty to support those who speak our language and share a common history with us and especially those who want to share a common future

• Romania does not want to question a territory lost in the past and does not have any territorial claims but it is in our interest to have a stable country bordering us

• Romania was the first state to admit the Republic of Moldova’s independence back in 1991

• Before joining the EU, Romania passed through a long process of democratization. Denying the Romanian identity is part of the totalitarian legacy in the Republic of Moldova

• Romania will unconditionally support the Republic of Moldova and its citizen’s democratization wish

• We will advocate for Moldova’s European vocation without expecting anything in return

• Romania is the third source of imports and the first exports destination of Moldovan goods. Even so, Moldovan authorities tried to impede the natural flow of goods between the two countries

• We struggled to relaunch bilateral relations but Moldovan leaders continued to accuse Romania wrongfully

• We will abide to European values and to the obligations coming from the historic legacy between the two countries that share a common language and culture

• The Republic of Moldova infringes EU agreements by introducing visa requirements for Romanian citizens

• Violence is not a solution, an agreement must be sought to continue the democratization path undertaken so far by Moldova

• Recent events raise important questions regarding the authorities’ commitment to democracy. We condemn violence against citizens and mass media censure

• If there are any arrested Romanian citizens, we urge Moldovan authorities to allow the consulate to reach them immediately. Romanian authorities will do everything they can to alert international courts if its retained or arrested citizens were not allowed to contact the consulate. These acts represent serious breaches of international agreements.

• For the young Moldovans, representing the next generation: the future is all yours while Communism belongs to the past. 20 years after the Berlin Wall was destroyed, the Republic of Moldova cannot remain isolated.