Voronin and Smirnov miss another chance to meet for talks

Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin and Transnistria's leader Igor Smirnov have missed another opportunity to meet for talks. As the meeting scheduled for Thursday, November 6, didn't take place, the parties blame each other for this failure, Info-Prim Neo reports. Moldova's Ministry for Reintegration publicized the correspondence between Chisinau and Tiraspol to demonstrate that the Moldovan side suggested that the meeting should take place on Thursday, around 11:00AM, in Tiraspol. The ministry further points out that the authorities in Tiraspol are to blame for the failed meeting and dismisses Smirnov's allegations that the Moldovan president didn't understand that the Transnistrian side accepted to meet. “Igor Smirnov has shown neither willingness nor political will to seriously organize the proposed meeting. By failing to name a specific location, date and exact hour, the Tiraspol side knowingly compromised the meeting. No other proposals or adjustments as to the meeting have come from Tiraspol”, it was said. At the same time, the MFA of the breakaway republic states that “despite a prior agreement on the date of the working meeting, the Moldovan side refused again to have it held as agreed”. According to the press service of Transnistria's leader, Smirnov was informed of the refusal by foreign minister Vladimir Yastrebchak on November 6. “Despite such a position of the Moldovan side, Igor Smirnov gave instructions for the continuation of talks concerning the organization of a high-level meeting”, the press service said in a communique. The Transnistrian side insists on receiving a clear and comprehensible feedback to the draft agreement “on friendship and cooperation”, which Smirnov handed over to Voronin on 11 April 2008, and also insists that the press be allowed to attend the meeting. On several earlier occasions, negotiations on a potential meeting between Voronin and Smirnov have failed, mainly because the parties were unable to reach an agreement on the place and the date of the meeting. Last time the two leaders met on April 11 in Bender, after a 7-year break. On November 3, President Vladimir Voronin was denied entry to the breakaway province as he was trying to visit his home village Corjova, located on the left bank of the Nistru, for a church consecration ceremony.