Civil society demands urgently modifying format of peacekeeping mission

About 40 nongovernmental organizations call upon the authorities and international partners to urgently replace the current Russia-led military peacekeeping mission into a genuine civil mission under an international mandate, Info-Prim Neo reports. “We request that all the provisions of the 1992 Moldova-Russia Ceasefire Agreement, in particular of Art.5 on the freedom of movement of people, goods and services within the territory of Moldova, be strictly observed,” reads a statement issued by the civil society organizations. The NGOs also demand that Russia unconditionally fulfill all the commitments under the 1999 OSCE Summit in Istanbul, in particular those concerning the full and orderly withdrawal of troops and military stockpiles from Moldova’s Transnistrian region. “We request a thorough and transparent investigation with international involvement into the circumstances and causes that led to the death of Vadim Pisari, and which should establish to what extent the actions of the peacekeeping officer were appropriate for the situation and consistent with his mission,” say the NGOs. The Moldovan authorities, the observers to the Transnistrian conflict settlement talks in the 5+2 format – the U.S. and the EU, and the mediators - OSCE and Ukraine are in favor of modifying the format of the peacekeeping forces in the Transnistrian region. Russia and Transnistria consider it is premature to discuss this issue.