IV 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 745 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to enhanced relations with the Republic of Moldova and support for Moldova’s 

territorial integrity. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 20, 2018 

Mr. PRICE of North Carolina (for himself and Mr. OLSON) submitted the 

following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with 

respect to enhanced relations with the Republic of 

Moldova and support for Moldova’s territorial integrity. 

Whereas the United States has enjoyed stable and positive relations with the Republic of Moldova for over 25 years; 

Whereas since Moldova’s independence in 1991, the United 

States has provided financial assistance to support the 

people of Moldova’s efforts to build a prosperous European democracy; 

Whereas the United States and Moldova further strengthened 

their partnership through the launching of the inaugural 

Strategic Dialogue on March 3, 2014; 

Whereas the United States and Moldova continue to broaden 

and deepen their partnership through advancing shared 


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interests in democracy, good governance, anti-corruption, 

energy independence, economic development, and security 

cooperation through the relaunching of the Strategic Dialogue on June 23, 2017; 

Whereas Moldova has been urged to fight corruption and improve governance since its independence, particularly in 

the wake of a 2014 scandal involving the loss of over a 

billion dollars, and Moldova has moved forward with certain reforms seeking to address these issues; 

Whereas efforts to improve governance and adopt domestic 

reforms are critical to Moldova’s ability to secure loan 

packages from international organizations such as the 

International Monetary Fund and the European Union; 

Whereas the International Monetary Fund has approved a 

three-year loan package premised on the continuation of 

reforms focused on strengthening the economy, bolstering 

economic development, and promoting trade and investment; 

Whereas Moldova ratified an Association Agreement containing comprehensive free trade provisions with the European Union in 2014, and the Agreement became fully 

effective in July 2016; 

Whereas the United States Government supports the democratic aspirations of the people of Moldova and their expressed desire to deepen their association with the European Union; 

Whereas in a judgment in 2004, the European Court of 

Human Rights found that Transnistria was formed with 

the support of the Government of the Russian Federation 

and considered it ‘‘under the effective authority or at 

least decisive influence of Russia’’; 


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Whereas the United States supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Moldova and on that basis participates as an observer in the ‘‘5+2’’ negotiations to find 

a comprehensive settlement that will provide a special 

status for the separatist region of Transnistria in 

Moldova; 

Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation banned 

the import of Moldovan wine in 2013 and Moldovan 

meats and produce in 2014, and has threatened to ban 

Moldovan agricultural products, curtail the supply of energy resources to Moldova, and impose stricter labor migration policies on the people of Moldova; 

Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation maintains a contingent of Russian troops and a stockpile of 

Russian military equipment and ammunition within the 

Transnistria region; 

Whereas by September 2016, the Government of the Russian 

Federation had issued Russian passports to an estimated 

180,000 residents of the Transnistria region; 

Whereas the Council of Europe, the Organization for Security 

and Cooperation in Europe, and the Government of 

Moldova have called upon the Government of the Russian 

Federation to remove its troops from Moldovan territory; 

Whereas in May 2017, the Constitutional Court of Moldova 

ruled that Moldova’s constitutional neutrality means that 

the presence of foreign troops in Moldova is unconstitutional; 

Whereas in July 2017, the Moldovan Parliament adopted a 

declaration calling on the Government of the Russian 

Federation to withdraw its troops from Moldova; 


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Whereas the House of Representatives and the Senate both 

passed by an overwhelming majority and the President 

signed into law Public Law 113–96, providing for a 

United States international broadcasting programming 

surge to counter disinformation from Russian-Government-supported news outlets and ensure that Russianspeaking populations in Ukraine and Moldova have access 

to independent news and information; 

Whereas Moldova has been a valued and reliable partner in 

promoting global security by participating in United Nations peacekeeping missions in the Central African Republic, Kosovo, and South Sudan; 

Whereas Moldova cooperates with the North Atlantic Treaty 

Organization through an Individual Partnership Action 

Plan to improve expertise, interoperability, peacekeeping 

capabilities, military education and training, and public 

sector reform; and 

Whereas Moldova will hold parliamentary elections in 2018: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) reaffirms that it is the policy of the United 

3 States to support the sovereignty, independence, and 

4 territorial integrity of Moldova and the inviolability 

5 of its borders by other countries; 

6 (2) supports the Strategic Dialogue as a means 

7 to strengthen relations between Moldova and the 

8 United States and enhance the democratic, eco9 nomic, governance, and security reforms already 

10 being undertaken by Moldova; 


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1 (3) encourages the President, the Secretary of 

2 State, and the Administrator of the United States 

3 Agency for International Development, to enhance 

4 United States partnerships with the Government, 

5 private sector, and civil society of Moldova and to 

6 focus United States assistance on supporting re7 forms that strengthen the justice sector, bolster 

8 democratic institutions, promote an open and trans9 parent government, foster indigenous independent 

10 media and an open information environment, diver11 sify energy supplies, increase energy security, and 

12 promote inclusive economic growth by focusing on 

13 the rural areas beyond the capital, enhancing invest14 ment opportunities, and increasing trade and job 

15 creation; 

16 (4) encourages Moldova to continue imple17 menting crucial reforms to ensure good governance, 

18 increase the capacity of and trust in democratic in19 stitutions, and strengthen the justice sector through 

20 anti-corruption efforts, transparency, tolerance, sup21 port for the rule of law, and maintaining open space 

22 for civil society to operate; 

23 (5) reaffirms the importance of and support for 

24 free, fair, and transparent elections in Moldova; 


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1 (6) encourages the President to expedite the 

2 implementation of Public Law 113–96, especially for 

3 populations in Ukraine and Moldova; 

4 (7) supports efforts to counter disinformation 

5 campaigns in Eastern Europe in ways that are con6 sistent with democratic principles; 

7 (8) affirms Moldova’s sovereign right to deter8 mine its own partnerships free of external coercion 

9 and pressure, and affirms Moldova’s right to asso10 ciate with the European Union or any regional orga11 nization; 

12 (9) calls upon the Government of the Russian 

13 Federation to fulfill its commitments made at the 

14 Istanbul summit of the Organization for Security 

15 and Cooperation in Europe in 1999 and to withdraw 

16 its military forces and munitions from within the 

17 internationally recognized territory of Moldova; 

18 (10) calls upon the Government of the Russian 

19 Federation to refrain from issuing economic threats 

20 or exerting pressure against Moldova and to cease 

21 any and all actions that support separatist move22 ments within the territory of Moldova; 

23 (11) supports a results-oriented ‘‘5+2’’ negotia24 tions process as the only channel for resolving the 

25 territorial conflict between the Government of 


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1 Moldova and the leadership of the Transnistria re2 gion; 

3 (12) supports efforts to resolve the Transnistria 

4 issue through a comprehensive settlement that se5 cures Moldova’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, 

6 while providing a special status for the Transnistri7 an region within Moldova; 

8 (13) urges all parties to refrain from unilateral 

9 actions that may undermine efforts to achieve a 

10 peaceful resolution or jeopardize agreements already 

11 reached, and encourages leaders of the Transnistrian 

12 region and the Moldovan Government to continue 

13 negotiations toward a political settlement; and 

14 (14) affirms that lasting stability and security 

15 in Moldova is a key priority for the United States 

16 and that these can only be achieved if the territorial 

17 integrity and sovereignty of Moldova and all other 

18 European countries is respected. 

Æ 


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