Ambassador of Moldova to Qatar H E Victor Tvircun
Highlighting the growing strength of bilateral ties, Ambassador of Moldova to Qatar H E Victor Tvircun has said that Moldova and Qatar are set to activate new mechanisms to bolster existing economic cooperation.
The Ambassador said that Moldova and Qatar have agreed on establishing a joint working group representing both public and private sectors and the group will have its first meeting in near future.
In an exclusive interview with The Peninsula, Ambassador Tvircun said that the visit of Prime Minister of Moldova to Qatar in June this year was very important which helped a lot in enhancing bilateral cooperation. “It was the second visit of any Prime Minister of Moldova to Qatar. Earlier, the Prime Minister of Moldova had visited Qatar in 2010.”
He noted that it was a very “fruitful visit” which provided an opportunity to both sides to expand present and future cooperation in different fields and in particular economic cooperation. “We also signed a number of important agreements during the recent visit of the Prime Minister of Moldova. One pact was on cooperation in agriculture field and another one for abolishing visa regime for citizens of both the countries.”
Ambassador Tvircun noted that the removal of visa requirement would definitely open doors for tourism and would also facilitate businessmen from both the countries to strengthen economic ties.
“In the same visit, the Prime Ministers of Qatar and Moldova also agreed on establishing a joint working group having representation of public and private sectors. This group will have its first meeting in the near future.”
The Ambassador further said that Qatar could invest in different sectors in Moldova like forming joint companies or launching new ventures on food security, IT, cosmetics, infrastructure development, etc.
“We have prepared some proposals and shared them with the Qatar government. We are ready to cooperate in these sectors. Other sectors include tourism, particularly eco-tourism. Moldova offers quality and price competitiveness in these areas. Qatar can also invest in metals industry like in different kinds of steel.”
He said that Moldova and Qatar can enhance cooperation in science research through collaboration between different universities and can also create working group of scientists on water security, nano-technology, etc. The Ambassador noted that different proposals were under consideration of Qatari authorities hoping that outcome was expected in the near future.
Talking about historical background of Qatar-Moldova ties, he said that during his appointment in 1990s at Moldova embassy in Ankara, Turkiye, he had developed very cordial relations with Qatar’s Ambassador to Turkiye which resulted in the establishment of diplomatic ties between Moldova and Qatar on June 13, 1997.
“This year we celebrated 25th anniversary of our strong diplomatic ties. Later on I was appointed as nonresident Ambassador of Moldova to Qatar and I presented my credentials to the then Amir H H Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani in 2003.”
He said that in 2013 Moldova opened its embassy in Doha which was the first Moldovan embassy in any Arab country. “Same time Qatar embassy in Moldova is unique in the sense that it is the only embassy of any Arab country in Moldova.”
During the last 25 years since establishment of Moldova-Qatar diplomatic relations, many official visits took place that brought the two countries closer to each other.
Talking about the role of recent years in strengthening bilateral ties, the Ambassador said that though the last three years were difficult due to COVID-19 pandemic but they provided important support in expanding cooperation. “We organised three exhibitions in Qatar, two of Moldovan paintings and one of sculptures.”
In these years, he noted, economic cooperation between the two countries also increased. “Now a number of Moldovan products are available in Qatari market like fruits, etc. This cooperation will continue expanding in coming times as there exists a huge potential for commercial cooperation growth.”
Commenting on the bilateral trade, the Ambassador said that it was ‘modest’. “But for me this thing is satisfactory that it is increasing continuously with a steady growth. There exists an interest in Qatari market for more imports from Moldova of different goods like fruits, juices, animal fodder.”
On enhancing bilateral tourism, he said that Moldova offers best eco-tourism options with easy visa procedures which could be obtained from the embassy’s consular section or through e-visa service. He said that there was visa free travel for citizens of many countries.
“We have rivers, lakes, forests … we have some of the world’s oldest forests having 300-500 years old trees. These landscapes offer an exciting opportunity for tourists fond of medical or wellbeing tourism.”
On Ukraine crisis, he said that Russian invasion on Ukraine had cast a very negative impact on the whole world. “Being a neighbour, Moldova is feeling its huge impact. As many as 500,000 Ukrainian refugees used Moldovan crossing while around 100,000 stayed in Moldova. We are spending $1m daily for refugees.”
He said that Moldova government and people were providing support, assistance to the refugees and trying to show them “our hospitality and generosity as we understand their sufferings”.
Terming granting of ‘candidate status’ to Moldova by the European Union in June this year as a ‘big success of our diplomacy’, the Ambassador noted that it also brought a big responsibility on Moldova to implement reforms and pass necessary laws.
Talking of 2022 FIFA World Cup, he said that Qatar’s preparations for the mega sporting event were marvellous. “I congratulate H H the Amir, Qatar government and the people of Qatar for efforts and energy they put in for these preparations. It is a huge event. After this event, there are other important international sporting events in the following years.”
