Marian Lupu: Moldo-Russian talks on Transnistria settlement must seek a sustainable and qualitative solution

The settlement of the Transnistrian dispute is one of the main subjects addressed during the third meeting of the Moldo-Russian Interparliamentary Committee, taking place on Monday in Chisinau. At the opening of the meeting, Moldovan Speaker Marian Lupu has stated that the discussions of the two parties over the Transnistria settlement must focus on identifying a sustainable and qualitative solution which would ensure the sovereignty and integrity of the Republic of Moldova, Info-Prim Neo reports. “The dialogue on different axes – Chisinau-Moscow, Chisinau-Kiev, Chisinau-Bruxelles, Chisinau-Washington – and between different players supposes, first of all, a phase of searches for a proper solution to the Transnistrian settlement. It is important that at the final stage, and the decisive one too, all these solutions find endorsement in the five-plus-two talks. This is the only format which can guarantee the applicability of this model and the only one that can offer political and financial safeguards”, stated Lupu. In another development, Marian Lupu has said that the Moldo-Russian interparliamenatry relationship has been on the ups in recent years. According to him, the Interparliamentary Committee has reached its third meeting during which there will be addressed a variety of topics of mutual interest, including the problem of migration, cooperation in the social and humanitarian areas, talks and signings of agreements, etc. “Our interparliamentary collaboration has its specific features. This committee does not aim at replacing the executive dimension and cannot do it. Its purpose is to complement the activity of both the legislative and the executive branch in the domain of development and deepening the Moldovan-Russian relations on several levels ”, Marian Lupu pointed out. The next meeting of the Interparliamentary Committee will be held in Moscow in the fall of 2008. When asked whether Moldova intends to quit GUAM, Marian Lupu stated that no discussions were held on the issue at the parliamentary level . “There is another problem. The real economic efficiency of this institution is being questioned as well as its efficiency in attaining the proposed objectives”, the speaker asserted. According to him, given that the economical and financial issues and those connected to infrastructure, gas and oil pipes were announced as priority domains, we should stick to these problems. During several years these goals have not been attained. “Something doesn't work, something has to be changed , we should work in order to make this regional economic collaboration truly effective”, Marian Lupu concluded.