Romania plans to increase media presence in Moldova

Romania is set to strengthen its media presence in neighbouring Moldova in an attempt to promote the Romanian language and “EU values”.

To these ends, the Romanian government has established a Romania-Moldova mass media consultative board, with the aim of creating a joint media space in the two countries.The board is made up of media representatives from the both countries, civil society members and communications experts.

“The board’s mission is to spread European norms to Moldova and explore the opportunities for bilateral cooperation in the mass media,” the Romanian Foreign Ministry stated.

According to Dan Stoenescu, Romanian minister for relations with Romanians living abroad, the board will increase the presence of news in the Romanian language in Moldova, and help to portray “the reality of Romania and the European Union”.

“The Romanian language will regain an important role in Moldova, while Russian-speaking people there will also have access to balanced and trustworthy information,” he added.

Analysts in Romania have commended the initiative, but add that the government’s plans will be challenging to implement.

Although Romanian is the most widely spoken language in Moldova, approximately 80% of the media market is in Russian. Moldova is actively pursuing EU membership.

Source: Balkan Insight