It is the first bilateral visit by a German head of government to the former Soviet Republic of Moldova in twelve years. One topic is clearly at the center of the visit.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz is travelling today for a short visit to the former Soviet republic of Moldova, which borders Ukraine and also feels massively threatened by Russia. His talks with President Maia Sandu and Prime Minister Dorin Recean in the capital Chisinau will focus on the effects of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine on the small republic with its 2.6 million inhabitants, but also on the country’s intended accession to the EU.
On his first trip abroad after his summer vacation, which was overshadowed by coalition disputes, Scholz will only be there for about four and a half hours. The Chancellor was already in Moldova for a European summit in June last year. However, his current trip is the first bilateral visit by a German head of government in twelve years.
Politically, the country, which is one of the poorest in Europe, remains divided between pro-European and pro-Russian forces. Russian soldiers have been stationed in the breakaway region of Transnistria, a narrow strip of land in the east of the republic, since the 1990s.
The pro-European government of Moldova is pushing hard to join the European Union and accuses Russia of targeted disinformation and destabilization campaigns. Scholz has already assured President Sandu of Germany’s solidarity at several meetings. “Let me be clear, Germany continues to stand closely by her side. We will support the Republic of Moldova to the best of our ability,” he said in May during a visit by Sandu to Berlin.
Germany has already supported Moldova with more than 41 million euros for security since 2018 and is, according to the German government, the fifth largest donor overall. Like Ukraine, the country has been a candidate for EU accession since 2022. On October 20, at the same time as the presidential election, a referendum will be held there on whether EU accession should be enshrined as a goal in the constitution. This would cement the path towards Europe that has been taken.
The Chancellor’s visit is likely to be about supporting not only Moldova, but also Ukraine. At the weekend, a newspaper report caused irritation, saying that the German government wanted to reduce support for Ukraine. Before his departure, Scholz made it clear that solidarity with Kyiv was “not at all” wavering, but that only the source of funding would change.
The German government has budgeted four billion euros in military aid for the coming year – the highest amount of any country in Europe, he said on the Sat.1 program “:newstime Spezial”. In addition, according to the decision of the G7 states, Ukraine will receive a loan of 50 billion euros, the interest on which will be financed from the proceeds of frozen Russian state assets. This will enable Ukraine to procure the right weapons for its own defense, said Scholz.
