Moldovan president to attend Coalition of the Willing meeting in Paris, Moldpres reports

This article is published under an agreement between Armenpress and Moldpres. Moldovan President Maia Sandu will participate for the first time in a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing on July 13 at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron, Moldovan state news agency Moldpres reported. The Coalition of the Willing is a political and diplomatic coordination format co-chaired by France, Germany and the United Kingdom, bringing together 37 countries, most of them European. The coalition aims to support Ukraine and help ensure a just and lasting peace by preventing renewed aggression after a ceasefire is reached. Discussions in Paris will focus on strengthening support for Ukraine. According to the publication, Moldova’s participation in the Coalition of the Willing is a natural continuation of the support it has provided to Ukraine. It notes that Moldova’s participation is fully compatible with the country’s constitutionally enshrined neutrality, as the coalition is a flexible framework for cooperation that also includes other neutral European states. Each participating country independently determines the form and scale of its contribution in accordance with its constitutional framework. Since the start of Russia’s military operations against Ukraine, Moldova has supported its neighbouring country by providing shelter to Ukrainian refugees, ensuring transit corridors for Ukrainian exports, offering humanitarian and energy assistance, and contributing to the training of Ukrainian deminers in humanitarian demining. Moldpres notes that, with its 1,222-kilometre shared border with Ukraine, Moldova is a reliable security partner for Ukraine and the rest of Europe. According to the agency, the security of Ukraine and that of Moldova are closely interconnected, and a just and lasting peace in Ukraine would bring stability to Moldova and the entire continent.