CHISINAU, September 11 (RIA Novosti) – Moldovan socialists are urging the government to denounce the association deal with the European Union and are ready to vote for the move in parliament, the leader of the country"s Party of Socialists said on Thursday.
Igor Dodon said his party plans to denounce the agreement after the parliamentary election is held on November 30. "The majority of citizens expect this from us. According to opinion polls, 55 percent of Moldovans choose the Customs Union and it is important that these people vote for the Socialists," the politician told a Moldovan TV channel.
Dodon said some 700,000 migrant workers from Moldova, currently in Russia, support the party"s plans. "We had a meeting with the diaspora in Moscow and St. Petersburg. All of them want us to enter the Customs Union," he said.
On Sunday, the Party of Socialists plans to stage a massive protest in the Moldovan capital Chisinau in support of the Customs Union within Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan.
In late June, Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine signed association agreements with the European Union. The signing came after a month of rallies against the country"s political course, with the leading opposition Socialist Party calling for a referendum on Moldova"s foreign policy. Later, the Moldovan parliament voted 59-4 to ratify the deal.
Moldova also has a free-trade agreement with Russia within the CIS framework. Russia has repeatedly expressed deep concern over the signing of the agreement with the EU, saying it would be forced to protect its market once it faces an uncontrolled flow of duty-free goods from the EU.
