Voronin crosses Nistru to visit his native village

Moldova's President Vladimir Voronin traveled on Tuesday to the disputed left side of the Nistru River to visit his native village Corjova, Dubasari district, Info-Prim Neo learned from the presidential press service. There, Voronin went to the village graveyard to see his mother's tomb and asked about the going-ons with the reconstruction of his native house. The President then visited the village church, which he helps to erect and which is about to be complete. The Corjova villagers urged the President to come visit their village more often, where he is always be welcome, the press service reported. “The building of this church and the renovation of my native home are irrefutable proofs that I will never abandon my native village”, Voronin was quoted as saying. Vladimir Voronin visited for the first time his mother's grave on 5 May 2008, after he met with Transnistria's leader Igor Sminov earlier in April. That was their first meeting in 7 years, during which Voronin was banned from entering the territory controlled by Smirnov. For that reason, Voronin was not able to bury his mother in 2004. Voronin's visit came amid Russian press reports that the Moldovan President and the Transnistrian leader are planning a meeting in Bender. The Moldovan Ministry of Reintegration said on Monday that talks which would launch preparations for such a meeting were being held. The Ministry promised to offer details on the place and the date of the meeting as soon as the talks completed.