The co-rapporteur of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) for Moldova Egidijus Vareikis said politics is sometimes not very cheap, while the cost of the non-recognition of the Transnistrian region represents 5% of the GDP. It would be better for this part of Moldova not to waste this money. In an interview for Radio Free Europe, the official said he admits that a solution for Transnistria can be found not in a year, but in a week, but Moscow’s benevolence is needed for the purpose, IPN reports.
“There is regrettably no goodwill for dialogue and for agreeing a plan that would lead to a solution. The Transnistrian conflict is unique. If we compare it with the other frozen conflicts, from Nagorno-Karabakh to South Ossetia, we see that there is no front line in Transnistria. Yes, there are those peacekeepers, peacekeeping forces, but one can easily travel over the so-called border from one side of the river to the other one, to Chisinau. It can be called a peaceful frozen conflict and the people got used to living like this,” stated the official.
Egidijus Vareikis said it is a peaceful, but not legal conflict. It is about a region that is not recognized by the international community. The Transnistrians are aware of this and try to invent a new history. “I recently read a so-called story written by Transnistrians, according to which the region has never been part of Moldova. On the contrary, Moldova joined Transnistria in the 1940s. Surely, this can be an interesting academic exercise, but we should accept the reality. But this situation is rather costly for Moldova,” he stated.
According to the PACE co-rapporteur, the cost of the non-recognition of the region makes up 5% of the GDP and this is the price that those from the Transnistrian region should pay. Those who pay are actually those who work and generate business and value added. Sometimes politics is not very cheap and it would be better for this part of Moldova not to waste this money. But this is their political decision for now.
