Germany will host donor conference to help Moldova receive refugees

The governments of Germany, France and Romania will organize an international donor conference in Berlin on 5 April to help Moldova receive refugees from the war in Ukraine, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock announced Monday.

“Together with France and Romania, we will create a platform for Moldova, and there will be a major donor conference on this subject on April 5 in Berlin. This will be the starting point for the distribution of refugees, but also for support” to the Moldovan authorities, Baerbock said in Brussels.

The foreign minister of Moldova - a country that does not belong to the European Union (EU) - Nicu Popescu participated on Monday in a meeting of his counterparts in the bloc, and presented a picture of the scenario that his country faces in the face of the situation in neighbouring Ukraine.

Moldova, Popescu said, has received “100,000 refugees from Ukraine, and that represents 4% of our population.”

According to the diplomat, it is a number that has “a great impact on the socio-economic situation (...). So, one of the key and most urgent issues for Moldova is getting more assistance to handle this refugee crisis with the humanitarian catastrophe that is affecting all of us.”

After the meeting, Popescu noted on Twitter that in his talks with European foreign ministers, he pointed out that his country needs “a solidarity airlift from the EU's external borders” to help with this situation.

AHG/MB