Moldova - US Relations
Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the United States recognized the independence of Moldova on December 25, 1991 and opened an Embassy in its capital, Chisinau, in March 1992. The United States supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova and on that basis supports the 5+2 negotiations to find a comprehensive settlement that will provide a special status for the separatist region of Transnistria within Moldova. The United States co-chairs the Community of Democracies’ Task Force for Moldova which provides international support to priority areas in Moldova's transition to democracy.
U.S. government assistance aims to help Moldova strengthen its democratic institutions, increase prosperity, secure its internationally recognized borders, and integrate with Europe and the Euro-Atlantic community. In 2010, the United States and Moldova signed a $262 million, 5-year Millennium Challenge Corporation compact for economic development and investment projects in irrigation infrastructure, high-value agricultural production, and road rehabilitation.
U.S. support for justice reform strengthened the role of prosecutors in overseeing trafficking in persons (TIP) investigations, strengthened inter-ministerial cooperation on TIP, and identified due process violations in TIP cases that criminal justice professionals are beginning to address through procedural guidelines. The State Department’s annual TIP Report raised Moldova from the Tier 2 Watch List to Tier 2, in part due to progress made on this issue with USG assistance. USG support for defense reform and NATO-certified peacekeeping capability has shown indirect benefits. Moldova is currently participating through bilateral agreements in several international peacekeeping missions. Members of a Moldovan Air Force helicopter contingent in Afghanistan in support of UN operations were trained through U.S. programs.
Counter proliferation training by the U.S. Export Control and Related Border Security (EXBS) office and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for officers of Moldova’s Ministry of Internal Affairs contributed to the arrests of six people suspected of smuggling enriched uranium in June 2011 in Chisinau. On July 19, 2011, a Joint Action Plan was signed in Chisinau between the USG and the Government of Moldova to combat the smuggling of nuclear and radioactive materials.
As a country with a small market, Moldova benefits from liberalized trade and investment and wants to promote the export of its goods and services. A U.S.-Moldovan trade agreement providing reciprocal most-favored-nation tariff treatment took effect in 1992. The same year, an Overseas Private Investment Corporation agreement was signed, encouraging U.S. private investment in Moldova through direct loans and loan guarantees. A bilateral investment treaty was signed in 1993. The United States granted Moldova generalized system of preferences status in 1995, and some Eximbank coverage became available the same year.
By 2013, Prime Minister Leanca worried that the Obama administration is losing interest in the small countries on the edge of Russia. “Obviously Washington’s focus is diminishing, is vanishing,” said Mr. Leanca, who served in the mid-1990s in Moldova’s new embassy in Washington. “If in the 1990s, Washington was the key actor, for instance on Transdniester, on the withdrawal of Russian troops, now it is modestly following EU leadership and example.”
At the Presidential Residence on 04 December 2013, Secretary John Kerry, with Ambassador William H. Moser at his side, met with Moldovan President Nicolae Timofti, Prime Minister Iurie Leanca and other leaders to discuss bi-lateral relations, which the Secretary said were strong and growing. The purpose of the four-hour stop in Chisinau - the first by a U.S. secretary of state since a visit by James Baker in 1992 - was to offer support and encouragement in the face of Russian threats.
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