The Tiraspol administration will not accept to reintegrate with Moldova in any other way than a formula like the Kozak memorandum, implying the federalization of the country. The opinion was voiced by Andrei Iovu, expert on Transnistria, commenting on Prime Minister Iurie Leanca's statements that Chisinau would be willing to offer Transnistria broad autonomy within the republic. Iovu noted that the Kozak memorandum is endorsed by the forces backing the region. The memorandum was proposed by the Russian Federation, but rejected in Chisinau.
According to the Prime Minister's statement, the Transnistrian region would receive broad autonomy similar to that enjoyed by Catalonia in Spain. This means that the region would have its own police force and tax system. “PM Leanca's statements about offering autonomy to Transnistria are nothing new. Moldova's legislation on the region's status already stipulates this in case the region decides to reintegrate with Moldova. The problem is that Tiraspol doesn't want to rejoin Moldova under any circumstances”, underlined Iovu.
The expert said that the Kozak memorandum was endorsed by the forces backing the region, but this plan was “nothing but a Trojan horse” for Moldova's statehood.
Iovu spoke about Moldova's chance to obtain a liberalized EU visa regime and this could encourage people from the left bank of the Nistru to request Moldovan passports. “The same thing happened in the Balkans, when the EU granted Serbia a similar regime, a large number of citizens of Kosovo began requesting Serbian passports. Then the EU imposed some restrictions for Kosovans. However, I don't think such restrictions would be applied in Moldova's case. Kosovo was something different: some European states had acknowledged its independence. Fortunately, Moldova is regarded as a unitary state and the Transnistrian region as a part of this state”, the expert added.
According to him, interest in Moldovan passports will grow, but this will not necessarily lead to the settlement of the conflict as this depends more on the political elite who have diplomatic passports and don't need the liberalized visa regime.
