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Russia worried over lack of progress at Moldova-Transdiestria talks

The situation in the negotiating process arouses worries
Photo ITAR-TASS
Photo ITAR-TASS

CHISINAU, July 5 (Itar-Tass) - Russia is worried over lack of progress at the settlement talks between Moldova and Transdiestria, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin said on Friday after a meeting with Transdniestria’s Foreign Minister Nina Stanski.

“The situation in the negotiating process arouses worries - first of all, because of the seven point of migration control the Moldovan side has installed along the Dniester. A new situation has evolved and it gives rise to numerous questions. Uncertainty is always playing in the hands of those who seek to put a brake on contacts and strengthening of measures of trust,” Karasin said. He expressed the hope that dialogue between Chisinau and Tiraspol would improve after a next round of talks in the Five Plus Two format (Moldova, Transdniestria, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Russia, Ukraine, plus observers from the United States and the European Union) due to take place in Vienna on July 16-17.

“We stand for aiming the efforts of the guarantors, intermediaries and observers of the 5+2 negotiating process towards bringing the side’s positions closer together. In the long run, everything will depend on the decisions taken by Chisinau and Tiraspol,” the Russian diplomat stressed. He also called to resume comprehensive work of the unified control commission managing the peacekeeping operation in the Dniester security zone.

Relations between Chisinau and Tiraspol have strained after Moldova, which is seeking a liberalization of the visa regime with the European Union, began to install migration control check point at the border along the Dniester. The Transdienstian leader, Yevgeny Shevchuk condemned these steps that, in his words, pose certain risks to people living in Transdniestria, the bulk of whom have Russian and Ukrainian passports. In response, Tiraspol unilaterally endorsed the law on the state border and measures to protect it.