Russian Sanctions on Moldova Worry Romania. (Moldova was part of Romania before the Soviet Union annexed it in WWII)

Romanian officials have expressed support for the government of neighbouring Moldova after Moscow last week announced the fruit import ban, which follows similar sanctions on the country’s cattle, beef and wine.
Fruit is one of poverty-stricken Moldova’s major export products, raising fears that the country’s economy could suffer.

TheEU import quotas on Moldovan products will be doubled from August 1, the EuropeanCommissioner for Agriculture, Dacian Ciolos, announced on Monday. In 2012, the former Soviet Union country exported fruit worth $103.6 million, of which 90.6 per cent was exported to Russia. Exports to the EU countries accounted for only three per cent of total export revenues from fruit, according to official data.

Romanian Agriculture Minister Daniel Constantin said that Bucharest could help to store fruit that could later be sold.

• “We can help with storage solutions for about 70,000 tonnes of fruit produced by Moldovan farmers,” Constantin said.

Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine signed an Association Agreement with the EU on June 27, envisaging closer economic and political ties between the three ex-Soviet states and the European bloc.
Soon after, Moscow imposed a ban on cattle and beef imports from Moldova and Romania, a move that leaders in Bucharest said was politically motivated.
Moscow has repeatedly signalled that it is willing to make countries in the region pay an economic price for taking steps toward Europe. In September, Russia also banned wine from Moldova, purportedly over health concerns, a significant problem for a country that depends heavily on agriculture.

• Moldova was part of Romania before the Soviet Union annexed it in World War II. Before the World War I, it was part of Tsarist Russia. A landlocked country lying between Romania and Ukraine, most people speak Romanian, although the country's constitution calls the language Moldovan. Russian is also widely spoken.

Russia and neighbouring EU member Romania are vying for influence in Moldova, where reforms are needed to end corruption and depoliticise key institutions like the judiciary and police.
[balkaninsight.com]
28/7/14
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Related:

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