On the 2025 Commission report on Moldova

(2025/2258(INI))

The European Parliament,

–having regard to the Commission communication of 4 November 2025 entitled ‘2025 Communication on EU enlargement policy’ (COM(2025)0690), accompanied by the Commission staff working document of 4 November 2025 entitled ‘Republic of Moldova 2025 Report’ (SWD(2025)0758),

–having regard to Regulation (EU) 2025/535 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 March 2025 establishing the Reform and Growth Facility for the Republic of Moldova1,

–having regard to the Reform Agenda under the Republic of Moldova’s (hereinafter ‘Moldova’) Growth Plan for the years 2025 to 2027,

–having regard to its previous resolutions on Moldova,

–having regard to the European Council conclusions on Moldova of 26 June 2025,

–having regard to the Council Presidency conclusions on enlargement of 16 December 2025,

–having regard to the Joint Declaration following the first Republic of Moldova-EU Summit of 4 July 2025,

–having regard to the outcomes of the ninth EU-Republic of Moldova Association Council meeting, held on 4 June 2025,

–having regard to Rule 55 of its Rules of Procedure,

–having regard to the report of the Committee on Foreign Affairs (A10-0000/2026),

A.whereas on 22 September 2025, Moldova concluded the bilateral screening that began on 10 July 2024; whereas the country is ready to start negotiations on clusters;

B.whereas the Government of Moldova has signalled its objective to provisionally close accession negotiations by early 2028 and to join the European Union by 2030;

C.whereas Moldova held parliamentary elections on 28 September 2025, which resulted in a pro-European majority, despite unprecedented foreign interference by Russia and Russian proxies, and reaffirmed the aspirations of the Moldovan people for a European future for their country;

D.whereas Moldova is holding technical discussions with the Commission on three of the six clusters for EU accession negotiations: I (Fundamentals), II (Internal Market) and VI (External Relations);

Progress with EU accession-related reforms, in particular on the rule of law and governance

1.Commends Moldova for its continued exemplary commitment to the EU accession and its steadfast progress with related reforms despite significant internal and external challenges; welcomes the Commission’s assessment that Moldova made progress across all chapters and achieved the biggest annual progress among the candidate countries; calls on Moldova to significantly accelerate the implementation of the key socio-economic and fundamental reforms outlined in the Reform Agenda, in line with its stated ambition to provisionally close accession negotiations by early 2028;

2.Welcomes the successful completion of the bilateral screening process; notes the Commission’s assessment that all six negotiation clusters are ready to be opened; urges the Council to open the clusters without any further delay, starting with the fundamentals cluster; reminds the Member States of the principle of sincere cooperation under Article 4(3) of the Treaty on European Union, which requires them to refrain from any measure which could jeopardise the attainment of the Union’s objectives, and therefore urges them to avoid blocking accession negotiations based on bilateral issues;

3.Notes the Commission’s assessment that Moldova made good progress in reforming the justice sector; recognises Moldova’s sustained efforts to build an independent, impartial, accountable and professional judicial system and encourages the country to effectively conclude the vetting process by the end of 2026; calls on Moldova to ensure sufficient resources for judicial bodies, inter alia, to reduce the length of proceedings;

4.Notes Moldova’s progress in the prevention of and fight against corruption, with an improved track record in both high-level and non-high-level cases; highlights the need to further strengthen operational capacities and institutional independence and enhance coordination among all key anti-corruption and justice institutions in order to guarantee the long-term success of comprehensive reforms;

5.Highlights the fact that the parliamentary elections of 28 September 2025 were the fifth consecutive vote confirming the support of the people of Moldova for the country’s EU accession and related reforms; condemns the repeated attempts by the Russian Federation, pro-Russian oligarchs and Russian proxies to destabilise the country, sow divisions within Moldovan society and reverse its European course;

6.Calls on the Moldovan authorities to leverage their strong pro-European mandate to accelerate key reforms and meet the ambition of closing accession negotiations by early 2028; stresses that genuine and tangible results need to be delivered in order to justify the trust of the Moldovan citizens and ensure their continued support for the European integration of Moldova; welcomes the establishment of the dedicated Parliamentary Committee for European Integration within the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova and underlines the importance of cross-party cooperation for the sustainable success of EU accession-related reforms and progress towards EU membership;

Socio-economic reforms

7.Welcomes the initial progress in implementing the Moldova Growth Plan, which is aimed at supporting Moldova’s socio-economic and fundamental reforms and enhancing its access to the EU’s single market;

8.Commends the agreement reached on 24 July 2025 on the review and update of the trade terms of the EU-Moldova Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area2, which offers stability and predictability for EU and Moldovan operators, and increases the country’s attractiveness for investors; notes that the agreement coincided with the expiry of the autonomous trade measures granted to the country since July 2022, which suspended import duties and quotas on Moldovan exports to the EU and thereby helped Moldova reorient its trade towards the EU; highlights that the EU is Moldova’s biggest trading partner, accounting for 54 % of its total trade volume in 2024; notes that the significant increase in the Transnistrian region’s trade with the rest of Moldova and its export dependency on the EU could create a ‘de facto’ economic reintegration that could serve as a pragmatic foundation for a peaceful political settlement and the eventual reunification of the country;

9.Reiterates the importance of civil society organisations in monitoring the governance and progress of EU-related reforms; calls on the Moldovan Government to engage in genuine and effective cooperation with civil society, including through the permanent consultative platforms; invites the Moldovan Government to make headway on the implementation of the national programme for the development of civil society organisations 2024-2027;

10.Congratulates Moldova on becoming an operational part of the Single Euro Payments Area as of 6 October 2025, facilitating transfers in euro and reducing costs for Moldovan citizens and businesses; welcomes Moldova’s inclusion in the EU’s ‘roam like at home’ area as of 1 January 2026, allowing Moldovan citizens to use their Moldovan phone numbers while travelling in the EU without incurring roaming fees;

Energy, the environment and connectivity

11.Commends the country’s continued efforts to align the Moldovan energy sector with the EU acquis and to advance its full integration into the EU energy market in order to ensure Moldova’s energy security and resilience;

12.Welcomes the completion of the construction of the Vulcănești-Chișinău 400 kV overhead power line in December 2025, with the electricity transmission through the power line expected to start in 2026; notes that this practical step reduces Moldova’s reliance on energy infrastructure in the Transnistrian region and enables the country to connect securely and reliably to the European electricity grid through Romania;

Cooperation in the field of common foreign and security policy and progress on the Transnistrian settlement

13.Commends Moldova for its consistent cooperation on foreign policy issues and its efforts to fully align with the EU’s common foreign and security policy positions; invites the country to continue to improve this alignment, including on restrictive measures against Russia, and to continue cooperation on preventing the circumvention of sanctions against Russia and Belarus related to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine; welcomes Moldova’s increased participation in EU missions and operations under the EU’s common security and defence policy;

14.Welcomes the extension of the mandate of the EU Partnership Mission in the Republic of Moldova until 31 May 2027 and calls on the Member States to contribute the necessary experts and financial resources; encourages the EU to continue supporting Moldova’s resilience and preparedness; calls for the EU to draw from the experience gained in Moldova in protecting the electoral process and democratic institutions in the EU itself;

15.Reiterates its full commitment to Moldova’s territorial integrity and to a peaceful resolution to the conflict, based on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Moldova within its internationally recognised borders; encourages Moldova to continue its reintegration efforts and calls on the Russian Federation to fulfil its international obligations by ensuring the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all of its military personnel, equipment and ammunition from the Transnistrian region;

16.Welcomes Moldova’s decision to withdraw from the Commonwealth of Independent States;

17.Welcomes the continued support to the Armed Forces of Moldova under the European Peace Facility; reiterates its call on the Member States to further increase the European Peace Facility funding for Moldova to enhance the country’s defence capabilities in view of the current security threats;

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18.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and to the President, Government and Parliament of the Republic of Moldova.