Joint Proposal for a Council Decision on the Union’s position with regard to the adoption of the EU-Moldova Association Agenda

Relations between the EU and the Republic of Moldova are currently based on their Association Agreement and on the reviewed European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) framework, with enhanced differentiation between and greater ownership by partner countries as the key principles guiding bilateral relations.

The EU-Moldova Association Agreement was signed on 27 June 2014 and applied provisionally from 1 September 2014. Following completion of the ratification process, it entered into force and full application on 1 July 2016.

At a meeting of the Cooperation Council on 26 June 2014, the Parties agreed on an Association Agenda, with a view to preparing and facilitating the implementation of the Association Agreement. The Association Agenda has provided a practical framework, based on the structure of the Agreement, for drawing up a list of priorities for joint work in 2014-2016, to achieve the overarching objectives of political association and economic integration.

In the light of the 15 February 2016 Council conclusions on Moldova, the urgent need for reforms in the country and the full application of the Association Agreement as of 1 July 2016, updating the Association Agenda to reflect the current state of the Parties' relations has become an important political priority.

The draft Decision of the Association Council attached to this proposal updates and adjusts the 2014-2016 Association Agenda and sets new priorities for joint work for 2017-2019. It distinguishes between short-term priorities (on which significant progress should be achieved by the end of 2017) and medium-term priorities (on which significant progress should be achieved in the following two years).

EUR-Lex: JOIN(2017)008: Follow the progress of this proposal through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=JOIN:2017:008:FIN

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