Voronin and Smirnov reach no agreement to resume 5+2 talks

President Vladimir Voronin and Transnistrian leader Igor Smirnov have reached no agreement to resume the talks on the settlement of the Transnistrian conflict in the 5+2 format. Instead the sides have agreed to continue the consultations,Info-Prim Neo reports. “Certainly we have not agreed to resume the talks in the 5+2 format. Instead, we have agreed to continue the consultations, for example in the 2+1 format, that is Moldova, Transnistria and the Russian Federation,” Vladimir Voronin stated Wednesday after meeting Igor Smirnov in Tiraspol. The Moldovan President has said the consultations are possible in other formats, that can appear or can be proposed by the OSCE, for instance. “We have agreed to pay special attention to the working groups to strengthen the trust measures. First, the working group on economic problems shall start working urgently, given the world economic crisis,” Voronin said. Igor Smirnov has said economic groups will created “to see who pays to whom.” The working groups will examine the situation about the movement of people and goods. Smirnov has stated he will cancel all the payments the Moldovan citizens have to pay to enter Transnistria. “We do not reject the proposals which are and will be, but everything should be on equal positions and I think we'll have success,” Igor Smirnov concluded. The two politicians agreed to meet in March 2009. The 5+2 format consists of Moldova and Transnistria as sides, while Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE are mediators, and the European Union and the United States as observers. The 5+2 talks were to be held on October 7 and 8 in Vienna. But they were canceled as Tiraspol announced its refusal 11 hours before the scheduled hour.