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PM Victor Ponta met his Moldovan counterpart Iurie Leanca in Chisinau on Friday
Romania's Prime Minister Victor Ponta on Friday joined his Moldovan counterpart Iurie Leanca in Chisinau at a ceremony where 100 school buses, three coaches and 35 Dacia Duster automobiles were donated by the Romanian Government to the Government of Moldova.
'It is a great pleasure to me to be here again. This is my 6th time in Chisinau this year. I was wondering if I have been to my electoral college in Targu Jiu as often this year. Every time I come with my governmental colleagues and other Romanian officials, I do it openheartedly,' said Ponta.
He added that he and Leanca were invited together on Friday, as part of his visit to Moldova, to show up for a televised show, where he was asked about the outcomes of his recent visit to Kiev, Ukraine.
'I said something in which I strongly believe: Romania and Ukraine are neighbours and we want to be friends, but Romania and Moldova are a family. We are brothers and sisters and I believe that in a family people visit each other as often as possible, they have things in common and try to use them for a better life,' said Ponta.
He then reviewed the joint projects conducted by Romania and Moldova in areas such as energy, culture, education, medical intervention in cases of emergency.
Ponta said that the Romanian Government is planning to contribute nearly 1 million euro toward a new joint programme, a support project for the funding of the Mother and Child Medical Institute of Chisinau.
'All we manage to do on one bank of the Prut, I want it tried on the other bank as well,' said Ponta.
In his turn, PM Leanca thanked Ponta and the other visiting members of the Romanian Government for their support for the Chisinau officials in all the joint projects carried out.
'Over the last 15 months, we have managed to establish a special relationship between the two of us that is unprecedented in the relationship between Moldova and Romania. Over the same months, thanks to the high generosity of Mr Prime Minister and the colleagues from the Romanian Government, we have been supported to overcome various hardships in various areas, and helped to find modern solutions for the issues, be them energy, education, culture or healthcare,' said Leanca.
The two prime ministers have distributed some of 100 keys to the school buses that will be used to shuttle students all over Moldova.
The other vehicles will be used by theatre houses of Moldova as well as public institutions of Chisinau. Ponta was accompanied by Romania's Minister of Development Liviu Dragnea and Foreign Minister Titus Corlatean.
At the end of the event in the Square of the Grand National Assembly of Chisinau, the two prime ministers toured the cultural institute that has to be refurbished and the Institute for Scientific Research in Mother and Child Healthcare.
Ponta and the accompanying governmental delegation were due to conclude their official visit on Friday evening.
40 million euros Romanian allocation for projects in Moldova
Moldovan Prime Minister Iurie Leanca said on Friday that in just one year and two months, allocations by the Government headed by Victor Ponta reached a figure that is unprecedented in the history of the Bucharest - Chisinau relationship, specifically 40 million euros, adding that this is an impressive amount particularly through the projects carried out, which envisage essential activity areas such as education and culture.
"Today, while I was traveling to Cahul to meet Mr. Prime Minister Ponta, I did an approximate mathematical calculation of the allocations made by the Romanian Government headed by Victor Ponta over a period of one year and two months (...) And I came upon an impressive amount of roughly 40 million euros. This is a telling figure itself, considering also the projects resulting from this unprecedented high amount. There has never been anything like this before in the relationship between Chisinau and Bucharest. This figure means kindergartens, Mobile Emergency, Reanimation and Extrication Service facilities (...), it means many, many other projects. For instance, the school buses we will see today in Chisinau. I know people are eagerly awaiting them, so, dear Victor, thank you so much. Our thanks go to you in the first place, and to your colleagues, for helping us overcome the inherent problems of this highly difficult period," Prime Minister Iurie Leanca said.
In turn, Romanian Premier Victor Ponta said that the Government in Chisinau and the other Moldovan authorities are serious partners to the Government in Bucharest.
"I truly believe in Moldova's European path and in the development objectives of the Republic of Moldova, and I think I do what any Prime Minister in Bucharest should do. Namely think, but taking everything beyond words and feelings, to hard facts, which are the concrete things we need to do for the people on both sides of the Prut River (...) This means being brothers and friends. We must support each other. (...) And this will prove to the citizens of the Republic of Moldova that a pro-European and pro-democratic society also brings welfare, not just trouble or crises. (...) Therefore I will continue to do this from any position I will be holding in the Romanian state. (...). And I believe that, as we would want this to happen, Romania and the Republic of Moldova will be together in the European Union in 2019," said Ponta.