QUAD: New Round of Four-Party Discussions on Regional Transport Cooperation

A new technical meeting was held within the four-party format Republic of Moldova – Ukraine – Romania – European Union (QUAD), organized online by the European Commission at the initiative of the European Coordinator for the Solidarity Lanes, Mona Björklund (DG MOVE).

State Secretaries Mircea Păscălu and Nicolae Mandra participated in the discussions. The QUAD format functions as an institutional mechanism aimed at optimizing logistics chains, coordinating border control procedures, and attracting European funding for strategic transport projects.

Participants exchanged assessments of recent developments and their impact on regional connectivity. The discussions focused on:

identifying and using alternative transport routes;

strengthening coordination of border control procedures;

the implementation stage of infrastructure projects, particularly those financed under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF);

the impact of the energy crisis and security risks on transport flows;

continued support for Ukraine.

State Secretary for Transport Mircea Păscălu reaffirmed Moldova’s full solidarity with Ukraine and commitment to providing necessary support. He also thanked Romania and the EU for supporting SAFE projects, including the A8 motorway and the Berești multimodal logistics hub, which are considered vital for strengthening regional connectivity.

Comment of the Institute of Danube Research 

The Institute of Danube Research emphasizes that the reactivation of the QUAD mechanism reflects a transition from emergency coordination to a structured model of regional transport governance.

Director of IDR Vitaliy Barvіnenko separately noted that

"QUAD is gradually transforming from a crisis-response support instrument into a long-term platform for strategic regional integration, combining infrastructural, financial, and security components of cooperation".

In this context, the format is gaining importance not only as a logistical coordination tool, but also as a strategic framework for integrating transport systems of the wider Danube–Black Sea region into the EU connectivity architecture.