The story of Russia’s credit to Moldova has ended before it even started. After more than seven hours of hearings conducted on May 7th, the Constitutional Court decided to cancel the approval of 200 million euros of Russian loans. The court sided with the opionion of the Moldovan opposition and declared the credit agreement unconstitutional.
In order to stop Russian credit viewed as damaging to Moldova’s medium and long-term interests, the country’s opposition resorted to the Constitutional Court’s legal weapon of constitutional control over the legislative activity, which curtailed parliament’s eagerness of signing an agreement with Moscow at any costs. The court approved all three of the opposition’s complaints without exception, arguing that the credit conflicted with the constitution. However, this decision could backfire.
Immediately after the decision was announced, President Igor Dodon suggested that the court is acting similarly to a “captured state”, adopting political orders instead of acting independently. Soon after that, the President of the Venice Commission Gianni Buquicchio condemned the “attacks” against the Moldovan Constitutional Court and emphasized the need of effective separation of powers. This narrative is strengthening geopolitical divisions in public debate and has also affected the credibility of state institutions.
more at /neweasterneurope.eu/
