CHISINAU, April 9. /TASS/. Transnistria's President Vadim Krasnoselsky has called the escalation around the unrecognized republic, where security is provided by Russian peacekeepers, a road to war.
"I have always said: don't touch Transnistria. Escalation in Transnistria is a road to war, possibly a world war. Many people are aware of this, by the way. Many pretend that it is something incredible. No, everything is probable," Krasnoselsky said in an interview with the First Transnistrian TV channel, while commenting on Chisinau's decision to switch from negotiations to pressure methods. He urged Moldova to return to the negotiating table.
Earlier, Moldovan Deputy Prime Minister Oleg Serebrian recognized Chisinau's actual withdrawal from the negotiations. He argued that now Tiraspol was expected to follow certain rules. Serebrian called both bilateral talks and the "five plus two" group (Moldova, Transnistria, OSCE, Russia, Ukraine and observers from the US and EU) non-functional.
Tiraspol has found itself in a difficult situation after Ukraine's decision to close a section of the border with Transnistria. For the first time since the proclamation of the republic's independence, all commodity flows to the left bank of the Dniester go through Moldova and must comply with that country's legislation. The supply of medicines and medical equipment has been affected. Moldova has imposed duties on goods coming to Transnistria and is blocking some exports. Transnistrian negotiators are unable to visit Moldova because of the lack of security guarantees.
Peace on the Dniester is currently maintained by Russian peacekeepers along with Blue Helmets from Moldova, Transdniestria and a group of military observers from Ukraine. Chisinau is for replacing the peacekeepers by a civilian mission under an international mandate. However, Tiraspol recalls that the mission that Chisinau insists on failed to prevent an armed conflict in 1992, which left more than a thousand people dead. Tens of thousands were wounded or became refugees.