The President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, who has been in office since the end of 2020, received a warm welcome on her first official visit to Austria on Thursday. During an appearance with Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen, she recruited investors and underlined the importance of a European-oriented reform course for her country. From the Austrian side, there was advance praise for Sandu and a donation of 100,000 cans of BioNTech / Pfizer to the country.
“We now have a few years ahead of us in which we can build a strong state for our citizens,” said the president, who was elected in November 2020 and whose “Party of Action and Solidarity” (PAS) has also had one since elections in July 2021 absolute majority in parliament.
Her team has taken on the responsibility to cleanse the political system of corruption, to strengthen the economic environment and economic relations, she said. Austria is one of the most important partners and Moldova is interested in strengthening political dialogue and cooperation, stressed Sandu.
“The new president and the outcome of the elections in July open up completely new perspectives,” said Federal President Van der Bellen. He noted that the new Moldovan government and Sandu have made the fight against corruption a top priority.
“Everyone knows that the independence and incorruptibility of the judiciary, the rule of law and freedom of the press are also important foundations of our society for economic reasons,” said Van der Bellen and assured his counterpart that she would support her efforts. The Federal President reminded that Austria and the Republic of Moldova would celebrate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in 2022. “Austria is among the 10 largest foreign investors in Moldova and the potential is certainly not yet exhausted,” he said.
Corruption issues in Austria itself and the recent government crisis were not addressed by the two heads of state on Thursday. “I have to disappoint you,” said Van der Bellen when asked by the APA. The focus was on economic policy issues, including those related to the rule of law in Moldova. He recalled “corrupt cash outflows” from Moldovan banks amounting to more than 10 percent of the country’s gross domestic product. “You really can’t compare Austria with that,” he said.
Federal President Van der Bellen also announced a generous Austrian gift of 100,000 cans from BioNTech / Pfizer. Around two percent of the Moldovan population can thus be fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
“It is extremely important that we show solidarity with those countries that are in a less fortunate situation than Austria when it comes to the availability of vaccines,” said Health Minister Wolfgang Mückstein (Greens) in a broadcast. With the current donation, Austria is also passing on an mRNA vaccine to a foreign country for the first time, he explained.