Russia recognizes the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Moldova and this position remains unchanged, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on June 14, Info-Prim Neo reports. “In connection with the latest speculations about Moscow’s stance on the resolution of the Transnistrian conflict, we reassert that Russia recognizes the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Moldova and respects its status of neutrality, stipulated in the Constitution. We are in favor of settling the Transnistrian dispute by granting Transnistria a special status within Moldova,” says the statement published on the official website of the Russian Ministry. According to the statement, Russia pleads for identifying a political solution to the conflict, acceptable to all the sides, while the discussions that are set to take place in Moscow on June 21 represent an opportunity for resuming the formal talks in the 5+2 format, as the OSCE, the US and the European Union want. The statement comes after the Russian Ambassador to Moldova Valery Kuzmin, in a reception at the Russian Embassy in Chisinau, presented Vladimir Yastrebcjeak as the head of the Transnistrian foreign ministry. The Moldovan constitutional authorities criticized the gesture.