Moldova refuses to pay membership fees to CIS

The Government of Moldova will exclude the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) from the list of organizations to which it pays annual membership fees, said Radio Svoboda, Report informs.

This decision arose after the denunciation of membership in public organizations and "banking sanctions imposed on the Russian Federation."

According to the draft decision of the Ministry of Finance of Moldova, the amount allocated for the payment of annual membership fees in international organizations in 2023 will decrease by 16 million ($900,000) leu (from 66.5 million to 50.5 million leu (to $2.9 million)). The decrease is largely due to the fact that Moldova will no longer pay fees for participation in the Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of the CIS and seven organizations of this community.

Against the backdrop of military operations in Ukraine, the authorities in Chisinau announced the gradual withdrawal of Moldova from the CIS and have already denounced dozens of agreements signed within the framework of the organization created in 1991 after the collapse of the USSR.

In July, the parliament voted for Moldova's withdrawal from the Interparliamentary Assembly of the CIS and from agreements that provide for the formation of a single educational space, provision of border guards with special equipment, and exchange of information about emergency situations between participating states, etc.