Russian President Dmitry Medvedev considers that the Transnistrian conflict can be solved if an agreement is reached with Igor Smirnov, Head of Parliament and Moldova’s Acting President Mihai Ghimpu said at a news conference on October 10. But Ghimpu emphasized that he personally does not believe the Transnistrian leader and that these problems should not be put on his shoulders, Info-Prim Neo reports. Ghimpu and Medvedev conferred on the issue at a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the CIS summit on October 9. The two heads of state also discussed the withdrawal of the Russian army from Moldova’s Transnistrian region. According to Ghimpu, Medvedev told him that Russia does not want that NATO comes closer to its border and that the Moldovan authorities should come to terms with Igor Smirnov. “I said that 17 years of dialogue is a long period and that the problem of the pullout of the Russian troops from Transnistria cannot be solved by Smirnov,” Ghimpu said. “In conclusion, we agreed that the withdrawal of the Russian army depends on our guarantee as regards the status of neutrality stipulated in the Constitution of Moldova. This stipulation can be excluded only by referendum.” Mihai Ghimpu also said that it is not fair for Moldova to suffer because of the relations between Russia and NATO. “Transnistria does not allow us to develop and become part of the European Union,” Mihai Ghimpu said, stressing that the President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko agreed with this.