The Newsletter is based on the radio programme broadcast on February 10 th , 2017, produced by the Foreign Policy Association of Moldova in partnership with Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung(FES). The programme is broadcast on the Radio Moldova public channel. The programme is part of the FES/APE“European Integration and Foreign Policy Dialogues” Project. The content can be reproduced by mentioning the source. NEWSLETTER MONTHLY BULLETIN FEBRUARY 2017 NR.1(131) Synthesis and Foreign Policy Debates The materials are realized by Lina Grau, foreign policy expert and programme coordinator with APE. TOPICS OF THE EDITION: 1. Sebastian Kurz , Austria’s Foreign Minister and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office: We should make best use of this window of opportunity in political terms 2. Andrei Deviatkov : Moscow is aware of the electoral character of Igor Dodon’s rhetoric 3. Association Agreement with the UE – opposing views. Igor Dodon maintains the Association Agreement disadvantaged the Moldovan exports. The analyst Dionis Cenușă contradicts him:„On the contrary, the statistics show, that we have an increase in the exports to the EU”. The last period was marked by several important events for Moldova. If elections were held next Sunday, only two parties would enter the Parliament- the Socialist Party, a party headed until recently by Igor Dodon, with 32%, and the Party of Action and Solidarity, led by Maia Sandu- with 18%. The other parties would not pass the threshold, according to a survey conducted by the CBS-Axa Centre for Sociological Studies at the order of IDIS Viitorul. The survey shows that the percentage of those who believe the country is going in a wrong direction dropped by almost 20% in just a few months. Eight out of ten Moldovans are dissatisfied with the economic situation of the country. Corruption, low salaries and pensions, lack of jobs and the stolen billion from the banks are the main concerns and problems that impede economic prosperity. President Igor Dodon paid his first two visits in his new capacity- to Moscow(January 17 th to 18 th ) and Brussels(February 7 th to 8 th ). In Moscow, Igor Dodon said the Association Agreement with the European Union hasn’t brought any benefits to Moldova, being detrimental to the interests of the country and that after the Socialist Party wins the majority in the next parliamentary elections, he will opt to cancel this document. Dodon also advocates federalization of Moldova and said that Transnistrian gas debt of over$ 6 billion belongs to Moldova. The Chisinau Government reiterated the importance of the EU Association Agreement signed in 2014, after President Igor Dodon had said in Moscow that it is disadvantageous for Moldovans and that it should be canceled or renegotiated. The Prime Minister Pavel Filip said the agreement is“to the benefit of the Republic of Moldova”,“will not be revised”, and the pro­European reforms will be continued. In Brussels, Igor Dodon said, after the meeting with the Deputy Secretary General of NATO, Rose Gottemoeller, that the opening of a NATO office in Chisinau would be a challenge and would undermine the Transnistrian problem settlement, thus he does not agree to it. The deputy Secretary General of NATO and NATO spokeswoman, Oana Lungescu, said that the NATO office in Chisinau will be opened based on the agreement between the Republic of Moldova and NATO and that it is going to be a small civil diplomatic office. A government press release announces that the NATO liaison office will be opened in Chisinau in April. The Austrian Foreign Minister and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Sebastian Kurz, paid a visit to Moldova on the 3 rd -4 th of February. He said that“the Transnistrian Settlement Process is high on the agenda of the Austria OSCE chairmanship from 2017”. Sebastian Kurz: We should make best use of this window of opportunity in political terms A ustria’s Foreign Minister and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Sebastian Kurtz, is stating in an exclusive interview to the APE/FES Synthesis and Foreign Policy Debates Newsletter that there is“a window of political opportunity” in the Transnistrian conflict process, in the next 18 months, given that neither Chisinau nor Tiraspol have elections, but it depends on the political will of both sides whether it would be possible to advance in solution of the key issues. Monthly Bulletin, Nr. 1(131), February 2017 64, Sciusev str. MD-2012, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova, Tel-Fax:+373 22 21 09 86 Website: www.ape.md E-mail: office@ape.md