17 February 2026, Chișinău – State Secretary Sergiu Mihov took part today in the opening of the meeting of the Bureau of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe (CALRE).

The meeting is being held on 16–17 February 2026, under the auspices of the Republic of Moldova’s Presidency of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers. Discussions focused on the Congress’ overall policy orientations, as well as the preparation and coordination of missions to monitor local democracy and observe local elections in the organisation’s member states.

In his remarks, the State Secretary expressed appreciation for the Congress’ continued support in strengthening local democracy in the Republic of Moldova. He also highlighted the contribution of the Congress’ expertise to promoting decentralisation and reinforcing the institutional capacities of local public authorities. The official underlined that strengthening local autonomy is among the priorities of the Republic of Moldova’s Presidency of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers.

Note: The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe represents local and regional authorities from the Council of Europe’s 46 member states. It promotes local and regional democracy, monitors the implementation of the European Charter of Local Self-Government, conducts local election observation missions, and issues recommendations to national authorities to support alignment with European standards in this field.