The MPs have a first reading to the draft law to ratify the Defence Cooperation Agreement with France, which was signed in Paris on March 7, 2024, IPN reports.

In 1998, the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Moldova concluded an agreement in the same field with the Ministry of Defense of France. This agreement doesn’t cover the whole spectrum of cooperation aspects and a new agreement was therefore initiated.

The new document aims to develop advantageous cooperation for both France and Moldova. The agreement provides for cooperation in such areas as defence policy and planning, reform of the armed forces, airspace control and management, military medicine, etc.

The cooperation relations will take the following forms: official visits and working meetings, exchanges of experience, consultations, specialisations, joint training and exercises. The authorities will draw up a bilateral cooperation plan each year, which will include details of the actions and the number of persons involved in carrying them out.

The initiative to conclude a new defense agreement belongs to France and was expressed after the 2023 European Political Community Summit that was held in Chisinau.