President Igor Dodon expressed his confidence that by further doing their job the peacekeepers working in the Security Zone will contribute to a beneficial atmosphere for ensuring the unconditional right of all the citizens of the Republic of Moldova to vote freely in the parliamentary elections of February 24, 2019. The opinion was stated in a meeting with the Transnistrian leader Vadim Krasnoselslii in Bender, which is controlled by the unrecognized Transnistrian regime, on December 25, IPN reports, quoting the presidential press service.
According to President Dodon, it is important to maintain the current peacekeeping operation as a factor for supporting stability and peace in the Security Zone. Particular challenges in this regard were witnessed this year, but they were deal with without serious complications by concerted efforts. The meeting centered on the prospects of developing the program of measures aimed at identifying a comprehensive and definitive solution to the Transnistrian conflict and on the opportunity of initiating a meeting in the “5+2” format in the nearest future.
Igor Dodon said he recently promulgated the law on mobile telephony that enables mobile phone carriers from the right side of the Nistru to have access to the Transnistrian region and vice versa and expressed his satisfaction with the way in which the confidence building measures coordinated by the two officials in the meeting of January 4, 2017 have been implemented. Of the eight points included in the Package of Measures, six were carried out and they work on the implementation of the other two points, namely the closing of politically motivated criminal cases and the free movement of citizens.
For his part, Vadim Krasnoselskii noted the implementation of the existing and future agreements between the two sides remains a fundamental factor in the development of the dialogue. According to the press service of the de facto presidential administration, the law on the status of Transnistria adopted by Moldova’s Parliament in 2005 was one of the subjects that was to be discussed in the meeting. “I would like to hear the opinion of the administration of the Republic of Moldova on this law,” said Vadim Krasnoselskii.
He also said that the two sides interacted a lot during the past two years. “2017 was the year of signing of agreements, while 2018 is the year of their implementation. But surely there are problems that need to be devoted additional attention. I’m convinced we will succeed owing to our common activities,” he stated.
The meeting in Bender is the fifth meeting between Igor Dodon as President of Moldova and Vadim Krasnoselskii held so far. The last took place at the State Residence in Condrița on September 6, 2018.
The Government of the Republic of Moldova during several years has suggested that the peacekeeping mission that consists of service members of Russia, Ukraine, Chisinau and Tiraspol should be replaced with an internationally mandated civil mission.
