MOSCOW, February 10. /TASS/. The first steps of Moldovan President Maia Sandu on Russia give mixed signals, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko said in an interview with TASS.

"So far, the first steps of the new Moldovan president on building Russian-Moldovan relations give mixed signals. On the one hand, Sandu says she is ready for dialogue with Russia, on the other hand, she makes harsh statements on Transnistria, on not recognizing Transnistria’s debt for Russian gas. On top of that, we see abolition of the law 'On functioning of languages on the territory of the Republic of Moldova,' which returned the status of the language of international communication to Russian," he said.

Rudenko noted that Russia closely monitors the domestic policy situation in Moldova. "We aim to carry on bilateral cooperation based on the principle of pragmatism and taking into account each other’s interests," he stressed.

In this regard, the Russian diplomat recalled that Russia’s Ambassador to Chisinau Oleg Vasnetsov had met with Sandu after she was elected president, with the Russian side reaffirming its readiness "to maintain and develop friendly Russian-Moldovan relations in the spirit of the principles stipulated in the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation dated 2001." Moldova expressed the same commitment, he noted.

"Let’s hope that common sense will prevail in the Russian-Moldovan relations under the new leadership of Moldova," Rudenko concluded.