Opening Keynote, From Regional Periphery to Strategic Gateway Iryna Pylypchuk, Director of Researc - Business Forum

Can North-East Romania move from Europes perceived periphery to become a strategic gateway for investment, capital and regional growth?

In the Opening Keynote of EastGate 2026, in Iaşi, Romania, Iryna Pylypchuk, Director of Research and Market Information at INREV, sets the scene for a broader discussion about the changing investment landscape across Romania, Moldova, Ukraine and Central and Eastern Europe.

Under the theme From Regional Periphery to Strategic Gateway, the keynote explores how geopolitical and economic shifts are changing the way investors assess locations, connectivity and long-term opportunity and why regions once considered peripheral could assume much greater strategic importance.

The session examines the role of institutional capital, infrastructure, economic convergence and cross-border connectivity, as well as the conditions required to translate regional potential into credible opportunities for international investors.

As Moldova moves closer to the European Union and Ukraines future reconstruction reshapes economic and investment flows across Eastern Europe, North-East Romania has the potential to position itself not at the edge of Europe, but at the centre of an emerging economic corridor.

Topics discussed:
Institutional Investment | North-East Romania | CEE | Moldova | Ukraine | Investment Markets | Regional Development | Cross-Border Investment | Capital Flows | European Integration | Ukraine Reconstruction

Part of EastGate by Property Forum connecting regional opportunities with international capital and decision-makers.

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