Former Ambassador Pamela Hyde Smith Speeches

 Ambassador Pamela Hyde Smith's Remarks – Moldova State University honorary degree

 September 30, 2002

Ambassador Pamela Hyde Smith at Moldova State University

Rector Rusnac, members of the Senate of Moldova State University, and distinguished guests, I want to thank you for this tremendous honor. I know that Moldova State University has been at the forefront of restructuring the system of higher education in this country. Certainly, the faculty and students of this institution who have participated in U.S. academic exchange programs have impressed their American hosts with the superb academic preparation they receive here. It is a distinct pleasure for me to be honored by such a distinguished and effective institution.

I am privileged to serve as the fourth ambassador of the United States to the Republic of Moldova. In this position, working on the many important issues that face our two countries, I have seen that the bond between the United States and Moldova is strong and growing stronger. Earlier this month, on the anniversary of the terrorist attacks against New York and Washington, the Moldovan government and the Moldovan people once again demonstrated this bond with a moving memorial service, with a seminar on the post-September 11 world here at Moldova State University, and by spontaneously placing dozens of flowers outside our Embassy. As I travel around your country, I meet many people who have been to the United States -- in many cases on programs sponsored by the U.S. Government -- or who have benefited from American-sponsored projects in Moldova. It is clear to me that at the person-to-person level, as well as on the official level, relations between our two countries rest on a very firm foundation.

In addition to the USAID programs, the United States provides many millions of dollars of assistance through programs of the U.S. armed services, the North Carolina State Partnership Program, the Peace Corps, the Department of Agriculture, and other agencies. We of course face many challenges together. One of the greatest of these common challenges is terrorism, and the United States is grateful to Moldova for its strong support in the global war on terror. Another is the Transnistria issue. I am encouraged by the ongoing five-sided talks on settling the Transnistria status question. As you know, my government believes that the parties should not miss this historic opportunity to resolve this longstanding problem. It is clear that a re-integration of Moldova would have overwhelming benefits for the people of all parts of Moldova by promoting stability, economic growth, and the rule of law. I have spoken out about this, as have other officials of the U.S. Government. Our position is in keeping with the United States’ long support for a democratic Moldova that is secure within its internationally recognized borders.
A third critical challenge is achieving sustained economic development in Moldova. The United States is the single largest bilateral assistance donor in Moldova. The local office of the U.S. Agency for International Development -- USAID -- manages a development assistance budget of approximately 25 million dollars per year. At the moment, we intend to renew our emphasis on job creation in Moldova, especially in rural areas. We will expand our activities aimed at generating jobs and income in the agricultural sector, through private enterprise development. We are also working to empower local governments and increase public participation in their decision making. As part of our program to strengthen the social safety net, we participate in the struggle against trafficking in persons. Our programs focus on prevention and on job generation in order to attack the economic root of the problem. In the coming year we will expand our involvement in the health sector, focusing first on tuberculosis.

In addition to the USAID programs, the United States provides many millions of dollars of assistance through programs of the U.S. armed services, the North Carolina State Partnership Program, the Peace Corps, the Department of Agriculture, and other agencies.
In the education realm, I am pleased to note that contacts and exchanges between academic institutions in our two countries are flourishing. In the past, our embassy helped arrange five three-year academic partnerships between American and Moldovan universities, including two involving Moldova State University. I am pleased to be able to announce today a new partnership, which we will fund and which will begin this academic year, between Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and Moldova State University. This partnership will involve exchanges of faculty and is designed to contribute to the development of courses that incorporate “service learning” into the undergraduate curriculum and build a foundation for civic education at the university level. Scholars involved in the partnership will develop twenty service learning courses and a service learning/civic engagement center in Moldova.

In addition, a number of university faculty and students from Moldova State University have participated in various other U.S. Government-sponsored exchange programs in the United States. Program participants are selected through open competition. Moldovan participants do very well at American universities, a testament to the high quality of education provided by the dedicated people at Moldova State University. These exchange programs, and the cross-fertilization of ideas they promote, are among the most important and impressive elements of the growing U.S.-Moldovan relationship.

An extremely important exchange program, although far from the only one, is the Fulbright Scholar program. Over the past ten years, forty Moldovan scholars from seven academic institutions have received these scholarships to conduct research in the U.S. in a wide range of fields, including biochemistry, medical science, law, political science, American studies, agriculture, and environmental science. Ten of these scholars came from Moldova State University. An additional four participants from this university, out a total of seven from Moldova, have visited the United States as part of the Fulbright Summer Institute program.

The distinguished American professors who come for a year as lecturers at Moldovan universities represent the other side of the Fulbright program. Thus far, twenty American scholars, in fields ranging from law to medical science to business administration, have participated in this program, and thirteen of those have taught here at Moldova State University. As these numbers suggest, the relationships Moldova State University has built with American academic institutions and with the American Embassy are strong and fruitful. It is my hope and expectation that these relationships will continue to grow.

In closing, I would like to thank you once again for this high honor and for the opportunity to speak to you today. I have spent much of my career working with the Fulbright program and other educational exchanges, and there is a special place in my heart for universities. The work you do here helps build a better society for all Moldovans, and we in the United States intend to continue working with you toward that goal. Thank you.