CHISINAU, February 19. /TASS/. Moldova will not abandon its efforts on returning the Dniester’s left bank to its constitutional domain, Deputy Prime Minister for Reintegration of Moldova Oleg Serebrian said at a meeting with Ukrainian Ambassador-at-Large Paun Rogovey, the Moldovan government press service said in a statement.
"Serebrian has confirmed Chisinau’s firm intent to avoid the escalation of tensions and resolve issues exclusively peacefully. That said, it was stressed that the Moldovan government will not abandon the actions directed at gradually bringing back the Transnistrian region to the Republic of Moldova’s constitutional field," the statement said. The meeting was held on the eve of the Ukrainian diplomat’s visit to Brussels where he has consultations planned on the topic of Transnistria. Ukraine together with the OSCE and Russia serves as a mediator in the "Five Plus Two" negotiation format where the EU and US participate as observers.
Earlier, the authorities of the unrecognized republic accused Chisinau of rejecting negotiations and switching to pressure. According to them, the Moldovan leadership tried to take advantage of Transnistria during a vulnerable time for the republic after Kiev decided to shut down the Transnistrian segment of the border with Moldova.
The last official meeting in the "Five Plus Two" format was held in Bratislava in 2019 after which the negotiations were paused. Initially, this was explained by political instability in Moldova and later the relations between the Dniester’s two banks became even more strained after Maia Sandu was elected Moldovan president. She made a series of tough statements about Transnistria and refused to meet with its president, Vladimir Krasnoselsky. Later, relations between Chisinau and Kiev were named as an obstacle. Currently, Tiraspol insists on the unconditional resumption of the negotiations, a stance also supported by Moscow. Earlier, the OSCE mission to Moldova also acknowledged that the pause in dialogue triggered the escalation of tensions between Moldova and Transnistria.