The EU's relations with Moldova

• The EESC welcomes significant progress made in EU-Moldova relations and it underlines the importance of continued efforts towards successful conclusion of negotiations on a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) and the restoration of Moldova's territorial integrity. The Committee advocates that a balanced agreement on DCTFA is reached and that civil society organisations are involved at every stage of the process.

• The Committee calls more particularly for ensuring an effective participation of Moldovan bodies in the public consultation and in civil society public hearings and meetings, which are part of the sustainability impact assessment. The Committee recommends the establishment of a joint monitoring committee for the trade agreement and it stands ready to help civil society to get involved in the monitoring of a future DCFTA.

• The Committee stresses the need for the strengthening of social dialogue in line with ILO conventions and the Council of Europe's Social Charter. Involving the Moldovan social partners in the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum and putting these issues on the agenda of the Eastern Partnership's fifth Working Group on Social Dialogue could bring substantial benefits to the whole process.

• The EESC also considers that encouraging contacts with Transnistrian civil society, with the support of the OSCE, to increase their involvement in policies aiming for approximation with the EU is of crucial importance. It also sees the need to carry out a study into the conditions under which the Transnistrian economy could be reintegrated as part of the process of opening up trade.

• The EESC proposes to establish a Moldovan Economic, Social and Environmental Council (MESEC) based on existing experience within the EU or under the neighbourhood arrangements.