For Moldova, the signing of the Association Agreement and the DCFTA with the European Union in 2014 was an act of strategic geopolitical significance. Of all the EU's eastern neighbours, Moldova is objectively the most European on several counts, including sharing a common history, language, culture and border with EU member state Romania. These provide a positive foundation for a successful Agreement, notwithstanding the major political challenges that confront contemporary Moldova. The purpose of this Handbook is to make the complex political, economic and legal content of the Association Agreement readily understandable. This third edition, published seven years since signature of after entry into force of the Agreement's implementation is substantially new in content, both updating how Moldova has been implementing the Agreement, and introducing new dimensions (including the Green Deal, the Covid-19 pandemic, cyber security, and gender equality). The Handbook is also up to date in analysing Moldova's dramatic political swings between the recent pro-Russian and new pro-European presidencies. Two teams of researchers from leading independent think tanks, CEPS in Brussels and the Expert-Grup in Chisinau, collaborated on this project, with the support of the Swedish International Development Agency (Sida). This Handbook is one of a trilogy examining similar Association Agreements made by the EU with Ukraine and Georgia.
Michael Emerson is Associate Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels. Denis Cenusa is Associate Expert at the Expert-Grup think tank, Chisinau, Moldova.
Abbreviations Preface Summary Part I. Political Principles, Rule of Law and Foreign Policy Part II. Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area Part III. Economic Cooperation Part IV. Legal and Institutional Provisions
These books offer a one-stop guide to the Association Agreements - the authors have painstakingly analysed the incredibly complex Agreements to deliver a compact and accessible overview to all those who need to grasp their contents. The national teams also shed light on the salience of the content for domestic reforms. Even though the books are not meant to be read like a book, the reader who does so is rewarded with a panoramic overview of the sheer scale and ambition of the AA-DCFTA. The books offer a plethora of pivotal insights into the Agreements while at the same time they throw up a number of important questions. A 'bible'. -- Kataryna Wolczuk, Centre for Russian, European and Eurasian Studies, University of Birmingham
