Former Ambassador Pamela Hyde Smith Speeches

Transcript of the press availability of Ambassador Smith regarding President Voronin’s visit to the U.S.

December 11, 2002

Ambassador Smith regarding President Voronin’s visit to the U.S.

Ambassador Smith: Hello and thank you all for coming. Last time when I saw some of you in this room it was way too hot. Today it is way too cold. I am sorry we cannot get the temperature right. I will start with the statement:

It will be my honor to accompany President Voronin as he visits the United States December 16-20.

President Voronin will meet with President Bush and, among others, with senior officials at the Department of State and Department of Treasury, which is our Finance Ministry. In addition, he will meet with officials from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. We expect many issues of mutual concern, both for the United States and Moldova, will be discussed in these meetings, including economic and political reforms, Transnistria, and financial issues.

The State of North Carolina, with which Moldova has a state partnership relationship, will host the President Voronin and the delegation December 18-20.

We are looking forward to this visit, and to raising our bilateral dialogue to the highest level.

Thank you very much and I will be delighted to take any questions.

Question Why namely President Voronin, and not other previous presidents, has been invited for an official visit to the U.S.?

Ambassador Smith: Actually, President Snegur was invited and did have a visit in 1995. Unfortunately, in the case of President Lucinschi, we tried very hard, we certainly were eager to have a visit, but logistical and scheduling difficulties intervened. We are delighted that we overcame difficulties this time.

Question Are there any contradictions between the policies of the government of Moldova right now and the position of the United States in regards to transition to democratic and market economy and in general what are the interests of the United States in Moldova?

Ambassador Smith: It is a good question. Let me first take the first part, as far as contradictions are concerned. We consider the road from a planned economy to a fully functioning market economy to be long and complicated. And we do not expect any country to make the transition immediately or perfectly. We are very eager to be helpful to Moldova; and I believe that we have been helpful, in putting in place some of the economic reforms that are essential to making Moldova a prosperous country. Certainly, much more needs to be done, and we are particularly interested in seeing the climate for foreign investments improved in Moldova. We intend to continue to be helpful in that respect particularly, but in others as well. We think that foreign investment and a solid, productive business climate are very important for Moldova and for the eradication of poverty here.

As far as what are our interests here, that part of your question -- we have several, and we are working, I hope, on all of them well.

We are concerned about and interested in the situation in Transnistria and the division of the country. Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, the United States has been more concerned than ever about porous and unguarded borders, such as Transistria has.

We are also concerned about the old Soviet munitions that remain in Transnistria, and we are playing a supportive role with Russia in trying to get those munitions removed, according to the Istanbul agreement.

And, additionally and very important, we are interested in seeing Moldova become a fully functioning democracy, a market economy, and a society that is much more prosperous and provides a high standard of living for its citizens.

Question Madam Ambassador, during our previous meeting you said that the U.S. supports the proposed document of the mediators for the settlement of the Transnistrian problem. In the context of the upcoming visit to Washington, we know that the Transnistrian issue will be one of the issues that will be discussed in Washington. We would like to ask you what is your position on the current situation of the negotiations?

Ambassador Smith: Thank you for referring back to Kiev document signed in July and to the United States’ support of that document. We remain committed to helping, in any way that we can, the two sides and the mediators to find a way to bring the negotiations to a successful conclusion. I am sure that in Washington there will be discussion about what further steps might be taken. We hope that the negotiations can continue quickly. We believe that the resolution of this conflict will be a very important step in making Moldova a more prosperous country. And actually we hope to see the moment when success is achieved and we can look back at the July mediators’ proposal as having been a real break-through moment.

Question From the Moldovan Ambassador in Washington we learned that the Moldovan delegation will also visit Pentagon. At what level will these meetings take place, and what will be discussed?

Ambassador Smith: Good question. Unfortunately we have just recently learned that Secretary of Defense Rumsfield is not going to be in Washington. That’s why we are working with the Pentagon right now to see if there will be someone at an appropriate high level to receive President Voronin. We are still working on that and, as soon as we know, we can let you know what the result is. Thank you.

Question First of all, I would like to specify if this is an official visit or not. How long will the meeting between the two presidents last? And my question is: you said that the United States is supportive of the withdrawal of weapons and munitions from Transnistria in accordance with the Istanbul commitments. What is the United States’ position regarding the Porto declaration, which provided that they have more time for the withdrawal?

Ambassador Smith: Yes, it is an official working visit that President Voronin is having in Washington; as far as how long the meeting with President Bush will last, we, in fact, do not give out information on the duration of each meeting. I can tell you that the meeting with President Bush will be on the 17th of December.

As far as the results of the Porto meeting are concerned, I know that the U.S. delegation was working long and hard. I had several phone calls with Ambassador Perina while he was there as part of the delegation. For the official U.S. readout on the agreements reached in Porto I would refer you to the U.S. OSCE in Vienna. And within a few hours I would expect that we will have a statement on our website. Just to remind you, so that you know: it is www.usembassy.md. Thank you.

Question Madam Ambassador, you said that the U.S. wants to see Moldova a fully functional democracy. Do you think that some of the opposition criticism is justified, like for example the one regarding suspension of an independent radio station in Nisporeni region this week?

Ambassador Smith: We just learned about this, but we do not actually have much information. If it is the case that an independent media station has been suspended, that would be something about which we would be concerned. We believe that it is the cornerstone of democracy to have a free and independent media. So, we will certainly monitor the situation carefully.

Question My first question: we’ve learned that during the Presidents’ meeting they will discuss the Transnistrian conflict; we’ve heard that President Voronin will request that the United States help also in regard to pressuring Kiev because the Ukraine has a double-sided position on this. And a more relaxed question: does it bother anyone that a Communist President travels to Washington?

Ambassador Smith: First, regarding what President Voronin may raise during his meeting with President Bush, I don’t know what he will raise. In talking about Transnistria, the question about how the border works is certainly important. I would expect that both with President Bush and in a separate meeting at the State Department, President Voronin will have a chance to explore all the issues regarding Transnistria in depth.

And to answer your second interesting question, President Bush is eager to meet with a variety of heads of states from all over the world. I know he is very much looking forward to his first meeting with the Moldovan head of state – President Voronin. Thank you.

Question What is the U.S. Government assessment of the investments in Moldova?

Ambassador Smith: The question is good, but there is not such a good answer, I am afraid. We are concerned that there is not enough foreign, and especially not enough American and Western, investment in Moldova. We would like very much to see more. The business people that I have spoken with expressed to me concern about the fair and predictable application of law. We believe that the Moldovan Government could do more to attract and keep foreign investments. We will be certainly working with the Government to find ways to help make that happen. We believe that without much more capital coming into Moldova it will be very difficult to achieve the major changes that need to be made and to raise the standard of living. And I would like to draw your attention to other small countries that have recently had centrally planned economies, such as the Baltic states, Slovenia, Poland, and many countries in Central Europe. And I think that in every one of those cases you see a significant improvement in the economy when you see a significant foreign investment. I am an optimist, so, we will keep working on this issue.

Question I am wondering what connection can exist between the recent NATO expansion, the recent extension within which the Russians have to withdraw the troops (the Porto Ministerial), and the visit of President Voronin to the United States?

Ambassador Smith: I think it is a coincidence of good timing.

Question My second question: how would you comment on the recently published news that Smirnov was detained in Vienna?

Ambassador Smith: I have read about the detention of Mr. Smirnov in Vienna, but I don’t know more than I have read in press. I would suggest that you talk to the Austrian authorities for more details. Thank you very much.