CHISINAU, January 19. /TASS/. Moldova intends to withdraw from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) after denouncing the organization’s basic agreements, Moldovan Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mihai Popsoi said.
"Moldova has begun the procedure of denouncing three key agreements laying the groundwork for its membership in the Commonwealth of Independent States, namely the CIS Charter, the agreement on the establishment of the CIS, and relevant supplements. After they are officially terminated, our country will cease to be a CIS member de jure, although its membership in the organization has already been suspended de facto. These documents will be referred to parliament for the final approval," he told Radio Moldova.
According to Popsoi, the government will complete the denunciation process by mid-February. "After that, parliament will pass a resolution that will be submitted to the president for signing," he added.
Moldova’s position on its CIS membership changed after Maia Sandu won the presidential election in 2020 and embarked on a course toward integrating into the European Union. Since then, she has been skipping CIS summits. In February 2023, the country’s government announced its plans to denounce 120 out of 282 agreements within the CIS. However, Popsoi said that Chisinau would not denounce those CIS agreements that are beneficial for the country.
This policy was slammed by the country’s former President Igor Dodon, who leads the opposition Party of Socialists. According to Dodon, Sandu’s course toward severing ties with Russia and CIS countries contradicts the Moldovan people’s interests. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova slammed Chisinau’s policy as duplicitous, noting that Moldova’s authorities are not rushing to refuse from socio-economic advantages of the CIS membership, despite their anti-CIS rhetoric.