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Moldovan ex-president urges government to resume talks with Transnistria

He made the comments in response to a statement by the Moldovan Foreign Affairs and European Integration Ministry

CHISINAU, December 18. /TASS/. Former Moldovan President Igor Dodon on Saturday said the country’s government should resume dialogue with the unrecognized republic of Transnistria.

He made the comments in response to a statement by the Moldovan Foreign Affairs and European Integration Ministry that said Russian Ambassador Oleg Vasnetsov made an unfriendly gesture by traveling to the inauguration of Vadim Krasnoselsky as the president of Transnistria.

"People making destructive declarations about Transnistria can’t be called statesmen," he said at a news conference. "We must respect the choice of our citizens, even if they live in Transnistria." "And you need to hold a dialogue with the leader they have chosen," he went on to say. "There are many issues to be addressed and to be discussed."

Earlier, the Moldovan Foreign Ministry said the Russian ambassador’s appearance at the inauguration of the Transnistrian head of state was unfriendly. And the chairman of the pardons commission at Moldova’s presidential administration, Ion Guzun, suggested that Russian Ambassador Oleg Vasnetsov be declared persona non grata. The press service of the Moldovan presidency told TASS that was the official’s personal opinion, rather than the official stance of the presidency.

Earlier this year, the Moldovan government called on other states to avoid sending observers to the elections in Transnistria and to refrain from contacts with Tiraspol. Chisinau said these steps would be regarded "as a challenge to the sovereignty and territorial integrity" of Moldova.

After that, Russian political scientist Natalia Narochnitskaya, member of the Public Chamber of Russia Vladimir Zhuravlev, member of the Presidential Council for the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights Alexander Brod, First Deputy Director of the Institute of CIS Countries Vladimir Yegorov, and a number of other public figures were denied entry into the country. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Russia would respond to these steps and expressed hope that Moldova would stop the unfriendly treatment of Russian public figures.

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