A number of subjects of 5+2 meetings’ agenda transferred for 2013

A number of issues included in the agenda of the 5+2 meetings held this year will be discussed next year. Among them is the free movement, the schools teaching on the basis of Latin script and the reopening of the Gura-Bicului bridge. Such an agreement was reached in the latest round of talks on the Transdniestrian settlement that concluded in Dublin on November 30. The next official 2+5 meeting will take place in Lvov, Ukraine, Info-Prim Neo reports. Deputy Prime Minister for Reintegration Eugen Carpov told a press briefing in Dublin, which was retransmitted at the OSCE Mission in Chisinau, that the last 5+2 meeting this year had an extended agenda that included the problems addressed during the year, namely the socioeconomic ones. Special attention was paid to the education sector, the difficulties encountered by the Moldova schools teaching on the basis of Latin script in the Transnistrian region and the actions that need to be taken to ensure appropriate conditions for their functioning. Eugen Carpov said that a working subgroup is to be constituted to deal with the protection of human rights. It will involve representatives of academic circles, civil society organizations from both banks of the Nistru and relevant international organizations. Steps should be also taken to intensify cooperation at the level of civil society and mass media in Chisinau and Tiraspol so as to jointly promote confidence building projects. Transnistria’s political representative Nina Shtanschi said that the last round was a review round within which the sides discussed the results achieved and on what they should focus further next year so as to keep the pace of the dialogue. She stated that next year they will discuss again such issues as the free movement of persons and the railway transport, where certain progress has been made until now. Ambassador Erwan Fouéré, the Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the Transdniestrian settlement process, said that they welcome the progress achieved this year, including the high level of interaction of the sides and the higher number of meetings held on a regular basis. The Head of the OSCE Mission to Moldova, Jennifer Brush, urged the sides to consider the recommendation made by experts on law enforcement and disaster preparedness issues. “These proposals have been with them since July and include creating an anti-crime taskforce and basic preparedness for emergencies. Resolution of these issues will benefit people on both sides of the river,” said Brush. She also presented to the participants a recent report on education, which the Mission prepared together with the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities. The 5+2 format of the talks on the Transdniestrian settlement includes representatives of the sides, mediators and observers in the negotiation process – Moldova, Transdniestria, the OSCE, the Russian Federation, Ukraine, the US and the EU. The talks were hosted by the Irish OSCE Chairmanship. In 2013, the OSCE Chairmanship will be held by Ukraine.