GOVERNING COALITION’S DURABILITY IS KEY QUESTION FOR MOLDOVAN POLITICS – EXPERT

The key question of the present-day political situation in Moldova is how long the new governing coalition will last and whether it will stand the test of resilience, believes expert Natalia Stercul, the Program Director of the Association for External Policy (APE) of Moldova.

She wrote in her new research headlined “A New Power in Moldova: a Test of Compromise” that the PSRM and ACUM are not simply parties with different political platforms and diverging visions of the country’s strategic course. They are political competitors.

“This requires a search of the best possible consensus decisions and the ability to accept mutual concessions. The greatest tests are ahead and all coalition representatives probably realize this.

In her opinion, this is because of the opposing views on many issues of political nature and diverging geopolitical preferences; because of how unsustainable, unclear and shaky the domestic situation in Moldova is, and because of the scale of the tasks faced by the coalition.

“The key question is how long the new coalition will last and whether it will stand the test of resilience. Local elections in October 2019 will be one serious test. PSRM understand how obscure the situation is and demand that ACUM signs a political agreement with them stating clearly the main goals of domestic and foreign policy. The key task is to prevent risks that could prove destructive for governance, consolidation of society and balanced foreign policy. This was President Dodon’s main motivation when he initiated the drafting and signing of a “Non-Aggression Pact” between the PSRM and ACUM as a solid basis for further work of the coalition partners”, believes Natalia Stercul.

The APE expert further wrote: “While few believe that this coalition will last, it may stay in place longer than initially expected. The importance of crucial decisions it needs to take in order to implement reforms can bring PSRM and ACUM together. Of course, this requires political maturity. Still this coalition is purely temporary and aimed at accomplishing the set goal. Hardly anyone can confidently project the future balance of power in Moldova. One thing that can be stated with certainty is that the country has experienced political change and a change of those in power”.