Raimar Wagner
Short vita
Starting 2020 Raimar is the Head of the new Project Office for Romania and Republic of Moldova. He studied German and French and also holds a Master degree in Translation Studies from the Lucian Blaga University in Sibiu. As a member of the German minority in Romania he was from 2008-2014 city councilor of the city of Sibiu. He is co-founder of the Association for the Embellishment of the City of Sibiu and of the District Association for Tourism, he is also board member of the Blue Cross Romania. Since 2000 he has worked as a full-time journalist for the Allgemeine Deutsche Zeitung for Romania. From 2007 he was active as an independent entrepreneur in the tourism branch. Between 2009 and 2014 he developed social projects for the German community. From 2014 he was Project Coordinator for Romania of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom.
Contributions
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The pro-European majority successfully counters the attack from the right
The 2024 European elections were characterised by a high voter turnout and intense political debates. Despite the rise of extreme right-wing and left-wing parties, the political centre was able to maintain its position. This ensures the continuation of European integration, the protection of democratic values and increased defence cooperation. A clear signal to the world: the EU remains a stable and unified force.
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THE EUROPEAN DREAM: MOLDOVA’S WAY INTO THE EUROPEAN UNION
The war in Ukraine triggered a historic change on the EU's eastern border and the EU’s calculus about the costs and benefits of admitting new members among its midst. Apart from Ukraine, the most hopeful EU aspirant is the Republic of Moldova. Albeit being a small country with seemingly limited power to affect global politics, Moldova’s accession is of geopolitical importance to the EU. The summit of the European Political Community, held in the Moldovan capital in June 2023, accentuated this and aimed at sending a clear message to Russia: Moldova is part of the European family. Moreover, the European Commission recently issued a strong recommendation to open EU accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova, which was echoed by the European Council during its meeting on December 15. This analysis explores the challenges that Moldova has to face in order to become an official member of the Union and provides possible approaches on how to overcome them.
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Historic Rally in Chișinău: Europe is Moldova, Moldova is Europe
"Moldovans are Europeans, and Moldova must become an equal member of the European Union by 2030." With these words, Moldovan President Maia Sandu addressed more than 75,000 people who came to a pro-European rally on Sunday. The President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, had also arrived, having announced to the crowd already in her speech in Romanian: "I have come to deliver a message: Europe is Moldova, Moldova is Europe".
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Blitz action: President Maia Sandu replaces prime minister
The Republic of Moldova has had a new head of government since Friday. This was triggered by a lightning action of the popular President Maia Sandu. In the morning, Sandu had invited the government cabinet to a meeting behind closed doors, which led to the resignation of Prime Minister Natalia Gavriliță at noon. Then, in the afternoon, the new Prime Minister Dorin Recean, former Minister of Interior (2012-2014) and until then a close confidant and advisor to the President on defense and national security, as well as Secretary of the Supreme Security Council of the Republic, was presented at the Presidential Office.
