Moldova appoints a new pro-European prime minister

Moldova's parliament approved the appointment of Vasile Tofan as prime minister on Tuesday, ending three weeks of political uncertainty. The independent financier has set himself the goal of joining the European Union by 2030.

Fifty-three votes in favor, twenty-one against, twenty-one abstentions: this was the majority with which the Moldovan parliament invested Vasile Tofan as head of government on July 21. He succeeds Alexandru Munteanu, who resigned without clear explanation after only eight months in office, leading to the fall of his cabinet.

Tofan does not belong to any party, but he enjoys the support of President Maia Sandu and her Party of Action and Solidarity. It was Sandu herself who proposed him, believing that Moldova needed a united government to move forward with EU membership.

Before the members of parliament, the new prime minister presented his program under the title "The European economy, an efficient state". "This is the commitment towards which we will work, and it is on this commitment that we ask to be judged," he declared.

His roadmap is clear: to advance accession negotiations this year, conclude an accession agreement by the end of 2028, and be ready to join the European bloc by 2030. To achieve this, Tofan intends to revive the country's economy, one of the poorest in Europe, whose growth reached only 2,4% last year. He also plans to reduce budget deficits and privatize state-owned enterprises.

Moldova was granted EU candidate status in 2022, at the same time as Ukraine. The two countries officially opened their accession negotiations last month. However, integration remains conditional on reforms that Chisinau has pledged to undertake since its candidacy was accepted.

Moldovan political life has oscillated for decades between pro-European forces and those favoring closer ties with Moscow. The EU accuses Russia of interfering in the country's elections, where a majority of the population speaks Romanian, but a significant minority speaks Russian.