U.S. HELSINKI COMMISSION TO HOLD BRIEFING ON MOLDOVA

WASHINGTON –The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (U.S. Helsinki Commission) announced today a briefing:

Moldova: The Growing Pains of Democracy

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

2:00 pm

2200 Rayburn House Office Building

Prolonged political stalemate in Moldova raises questions about the country's ability to stay the course of reform despite the lack of immediate and gratifying results. At the same time, December's election of Yevgeny Shevchuk – a new and younger face in Transnistria – has again raised hopes for normalization of the decades-old conflict with the breakaway region. Is Moldova's political deadlock proof that the democratic process is working or evidence of a failing system? Is Russia losing the ability to impose its own flagging brand of "sovereign democracy" in nearby separatist enclaves? What can the United States do to encourage Moldova's slow, but steady progress toward greater implementation of Helsinki commitments? Please join our distinguished panel for a timely discussion of recent developments in Moldova.

Witnesses Scheduled to Testify:

H.E. Igor Munteanu, Ambassador of Moldova to the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Brazil

Ambassador William Hill, Professor of National Security Strategy at the National War College and former Head of the OSCE Mission to Moldova

Mr. Matthew Rojansky, Deputy Director of the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment