This article refers to the cooperation between Council of Europe and European Union in the Republic of Moldova. Since 1993, in pursuit of common aims with regard to the protection of democracy, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms and the rule of law in Europe, the Council of Europe and the European Union have developed a vibrant co-operation instrument known as joint programmes. The majority of joint programmes are country-specific but there are also a number of regional and multilateral thematic joint programmes regarding, for instance, national minorities, awareness-raising on the abolition of the death penalty, national minorities, the fight against organized crime and corruption, action to promote the European Social Charter and a programme to strengthen democracy and constitutional development in central and eastern Europe with the Council of Europe's Venice Commission.