For the Transnistrian dispute to be resolved, the Russian army and munitions must be withdrawn from the left side of the Nistru and a special status should be given to the region by the model of the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia, said the jurist of “Promo-Lex” Association Alexandru Postica. For his part, historian Octavian Țîcu said the Transnistrian conflict can be settled only with the firm political will of a pro-European government. The position of the government’s representatives is that the settlement of the Transnistrian conflict depends on the end result of the war in Ukraine, IPN reports.
According to representatives of civil society, neither the separatist political leaders nor the business community and citizens of the Transnistrian region want Moldova to be engaged in a war.
“The situation in the Transnistrian region changed a lot compared with the situation a year ago. The war powerfully affected the security architecture at European level and also changed the field realities when it goes to the Transnistrian region. Today, the Transnistrian region depends on the Republic of Moldova when it goes to the circulation of goods. The region is led by a business group that has financial interests. The companies’ trade is significantly tied to the European space. Their economic interests are to be far from the war. Officially, declaratively, they do not distance themselves from the Kremlin, but the economic realities changed,” the executive director of the Institute for European Policies and Reforms Iulian Groza stated in the talk show “Shadow Cabinet” on JurnalTV.
In the same connection, “Promo-Lex” jurist Alexandru Postica said the Transnistrian region can be reintegrated and the conflict can be resolved peacefully if Russia withdraws its army from the left side of the Nistru and its armament from the Cobasna depot.
“The government of the Republic of Moldova requested to withdraw the Russian armament and army from the territory of our country. These are two preconditions for later discussing the political side. At political level, there is a view about the way in which this part of the country should be reintegrated. In accordance with the Constitution, the Transnistrian region has a special status. Those who will be elected in a democratic way by the citizens from the left side of the Nistru will benefit from a particular status that can be similar to that of the Gagauz region. This would be the most plausible reintegration scenario,” said Alexandru Postică.
“A firm pro-European government is needed for the Transnistrian dispute to be resolved. The Transnistrian conflict is perpetuated because we have the change of electoral cycles that are geopolitical changes. Until recently, we had a defense minister who was managed directly from Moscow. Russia knew what was going on in the Ministry of Defense as it had its right-hand man there during the ACUM-PSRM government,” stated Octavian Țîcu.
The representatives of the government said the way in which the Transnistrian conflict will be solved depends on the end result of the war in Ukraine. The head of the Parliament’s commission on national security, defense and public order Lilian Carp said the current 5+2 negotiation format is nonfunctional and outdated.
“The Transnistrian conflict should have been settled in a 5+2 format that could not identify a solution during many years. Now two parties of the negotiation format, Ukraine and Russia, are at war. This format does not work and I consider it cannot work even after the war is over. A lot depends on the way in which this war ends. When the peace is negotiated in an international format, we should see if the Transnistrian conflict is addressed together with the Ukrainian one. Russia created enclaves in different republics or separatist regions in the post-Soviet space. Their plan could envision the worsening of the situation in the south of the Republic of Moldova. We must make sure we control the situation if someone starts to move,” said PAS MP Lilian Carp.
Earlier, Parliament gave a first reading to a bill providing that separatism, financing of terrorism, inciting of separatism, conspiracy against the Republic of Moldova, collection and stealing of information that can cause damage to the country’s sovereignty, independence and integrity is punished with imprisonment.
