The EU should develop an “equivalent” version of the US Marshall Plan dating from World War II to finance development projects in Moldova and Ukraine.
This was stated on Monday, April 29, by the President of Moldova, Maia Sandu, who spoke at the annual EU budget conference in Brussels, reports Ukrinform, referring to Euroactiv.
“Just as Western Europe was offered an economic lifeline after World War II thanks to the US Marshall Plan, Moldova and Ukraine need a narrowly focused 21st century equivalent from the “European Union,” Sandu said.
She added that the Marshall Plan was intended to show “an exhausted continent that capitalism and democracy were a better way forward than anything communism offered”, and that the modern version of the plan should give “a similar hope to those of us who are working towards a better future.” Membership of the EU.
During his speech, Sandu repeatedly stressed that the bloc’s budget should not only finance crucial green, digital and infrastructure projects, but also aim to “protect values” that are threatened by ” forces with a dark vision” for the European continent.
“We must also invest to save lives, bring peace and defend freedom at key moments in history,” added the Moldovan leader.
At the same time, the Moldovan president expressed optimism about Europe’s ability to cope with the security challenges caused by Russian aggression against Ukraine.
“Europe has always mobilized and found the resources to help because we Europeans believe that the expansion of evil can only be stopped by the expansion of good,” she said.
Sandu’s call echoes similar calls for the “Marshall Plan” for Ukraine, made last year by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and a number of EU member states, notes The report.
Signed by former U.S. President Harry Truman in 1948, the Marshall Plan, named for then-Secretary of State George Marshall, provided billions of dollars in economic aid to European countries devastated by World War II .
As Ukrinform reported earlier, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that Ukraine’s reconstruction will become the “Marshall Plan of the 21st century.” German MPs also called for support for Ukraine via the “Marshall Plan”.
Additionally, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson, explored the possibility of creating a new organization that would help support and rebuild the war-torn nation.
