EU must unblock Moldova’s membership bid, government says after historic vote

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen took to X on Monday to show her support for the result, telling Moldova “you’ve done it again.”

“You made your choice clear: Europe. Democracy. Freedom. Our door is open. And we will stand with you every step of the way,” she wrote.

Moldova’s application is twinned with Ukraine’s, and Kremlin-friendly Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has repeatedly vowed to block Ukraine joining the union. As the opening of negotiations requires unanimous support from EU countries, this has created an impasse that top European leaders and officials are working to try and circumvent.

The question of EU membership was firmly on the ballot paper in Sunday’s nationwide poll. PAS secured more than 50 percent of the vote after campaigning primarily on the issue against the pro-Russian Patriotic Bloc, which won 24 percent. The election was subject to “unprecedented” levels of Russian interference designed to derail Moldova’s pro-EU path, officials warned, with documented evidence of disinformation and vote-buying attempts.

Gherasimov said other countries could learn from the unity on display, arguing that what makes the EU “strong and a global player” is the “unity of the 27 member states. And the moment when one of the member states hesitates, then the whole union suffers around it.”

Earlier Monday, POLITICO reported that European Council President António Costa is sounding out capitals to try and garner support for a rule change that would allow negotiating ‘clusters’ to be opened by a qualified majority vote of countries. While unanimous support would still be needed to green-light final accession, Costa’s plan would avoid costly delays to the process.