5+2 consultations suspended again

The latest round of consultations on the Transnistrian conflict settlement in the 5+2 setting, which took place on Tuesday, June 22, in Moscow, was suspended due to the “inflexible position” of the Transnistrian side, it was said in a press release from the Moldovan Government, Info-Prim Neo reports. Participants agreed to suspend the Moscow round of informal negotiations to allow time for additional preparatory consultations to then return to discussions in the Russian capital in the near future. The key issues on the Moscow agenda included the prospects of resuming the formal negotiations. The Moldovan authorities has reiterated its firm position that formal 5+2 negotiations must be resumed unconditionally, a position which is unanimously supported by the mediators and observers to the settlement process. The Moldovan delegation has also reiterated that the main goal of the negotiation process should be to develop a special legal status for the Transnistrian region, respecting Moldova's sovereignty and territorial integrity and within its internationally recognized borders. This approach is supported by all the international partners involved in the settlement process: Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE, as mediators; and the European Union and the United States, as observers. The Moldovan delegation to the Moscow consultations was headed by Eugen Carpov, Deputy Minister for Reintegration Matters.