Andrei Stratan required Serghei Lavrov to show his position towards new customs regime at Moldovan-Ukrainian border

Mninister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Moldova, Andrei Stratan, addressed on Wednesday, 22 March, to his Russian counterpart Serghei Lavrov, with a message regarding recent statements of the ambassador of Russian Federation in Chisinau, Nikolai Reabov, about the new customs regime at Moldovan-Ukrainian border. Stratan asked Lavrov to show the official position of administration of Moscow in this sense. Andrei Stratan announced on Wednesday, after government meeting, that Reabov’s statements addressed to Moldova are offending, fact mentioned in the letter sent to Lavrov, and have an obvious biased character, not including in the practice of diplomatic dialogue between to sovereign states. He underlined that this case is not unique, but hoped that it would dot repeat. The foreign minister noted that through this letter Moldova wanted to find out the official opinion of the Russian Federation linked to this issue, „as it is not known exactly if Reabov expressed his own opinion of the official one.” A video copy of the press conference held at the Russian Embassy was attached to the letter. For consultation related to Moldovan-Russian relations, as well as the statement of the Russian diplomat, the ambassador of Moldova in Moscow was invited in Chisinau. On Wednesday, he participated in a meeting convoked by president Vladimir Voronin, which was attended as well by the speaker Marian Lupu, head of diplomacy Andrei Stratan and minister of reintegration Vasili Sova. There were discussed during the meeting problems regarding the preparing for inter-ministerial consultations, and conclusion of certain agreements etc. Asked to appreciate the assistance given by Russia to Transnistrian region, Andrei Stratan said that they were surprised by this decision. „Moldova does not understand the sense of this assistance to Transnistria and no one of international institutions did not such a situation. Russia’s actions were not coordinated with Chisinau, but we hope to be informed on this,” the minister underscored. Moldova hopes that authorities of Transnistrian region will adopt a correct decision regarding the situation at Moldovan-Ukrainian border and will offer to businessmen the possibility to work normally, he said. Later the latter ones will take the advantage offered by European institutions, including preferential trade regime GSP plus. At the beginning of this week, ambassador Nikolai Reabov criticised very seriously the actions of Moldova and Ukraine at the Ukrainian border, accusing Moldovan part of premeditated political measures, which follow creation of a social explosive situation. Russian diplomat was convinced that the aim of these actions is to change the administration of the Transnistrian region for a servile one. According to Reabov, this way Moldova violates many previous agreements, asking to cancel the new customs regulations for exporters of Transnistria.