CHISINAU, May 4. /TASS/. Ukraine has no intention to attack Transnistria, but keeps forces near its border, because the Operation Group of Russian Forces (OGRF) is deployed there, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said in an interview for Moldova’s TV-8.

"Undoubtedly, Transnistria, located on our southwestern flank, is a risk, which forces us to send forces to this swath of the border, for potential deterrence and situation control But I would like to underscore that Transnistria is an issue of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Moldova. And we totally respect the way that the Moldovan government would choose in terms of relations with Transnistria and reintegration of this region," Kuleba said.

At the same time, he underscored that he does not believe that Moldova’s neutral status, enshrined in its constitution, will protect it.

"You have the neutral status, but you have no army. If someone believes that [the neutral status] will save you - that is an illusion," Kuleba said.

Speaking about the ammunition depot in Kolbasna, Transnistria, he underscored that "the attention to this facility is understandable in a situation when any weapon is worth its weight in gold. But we do not have a clear understanding what exactly is stored at those depots in Transnistria, and in what state."

Previously, the media reported that Ukraine relocated a major military contingent to the Odessa Region in order to carry out provocations against Transnistria. Transnistrian Foreign Minister Vitaly Ignatyev stated that "peace in the conflict security area is ensured by the joint peacekeeping contingent and the situation there is under control."

In March, Transnistria’s Ministry of State Security said that it had thwarted a terrorist attack against the republic’s officials and members of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) delegation to Moldova. The perpetrators planned to detonate a car bomb in downtown Tiraspol, the Transnistrian capital. Two suspects were reported to have been detained. Transnistrian President Vadim Krasnoselsky stated the attack had been planned at the behest of the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU).

In April 2022, Transnistria was rocked by a series of terrorist attacks, which began with the shelling of the State Security Ministry building with grenade launchers. Later, the broadcast antennas were blown up at one of the region’s largest radio and television centers located in the Mayak settlement. Military airfields near Tiraspol and Rybnitsa also came under attack, as well as an ammunition depot near the settlement of Cobasna, where some 20,000 tons of ammunition is stored.