MOSCOW, January 31. /TASS/. The "5+2" negotiation format on the Transnistrian settlement which, in addition to Moldova and Transnistria, includes Russia and Ukraine as guarantors and intermediaries, the OSCE as an intermediary and the US and EU as observers, may be restored with time, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing.

"We think that the '5+2' format, undoubtedly, has a chance of resuming its work with time," she noted.

The diplomat highlighted the fact that "the parties to the conflict are also making statements along these lines, and their opinion is extremely important."

"Recently, Deputy Prime Minister for Reintegration of Moldova Oleg Serebrian stressed that the format had merely been frozen, not discarded," she said. "Earlier, calls to resume the '5+2' format at the highest level were also heard from Tiraspol. This is a defining stance for us," the diplomat added.

As for the prospects of talks on Moldova’s potential EU membership without taking into account Transnistria, Zakharova noted that "pre-accession talks with the European Union are Chisinau and Brussels’ business." "That said, we think that it is premature to hold them without taking into account the Transnistrian issue, and, most importantly, it is futile," the diplomat emphasized.