We must focus on opportunities, not Shevchuks statements, APE expert

The official Chisinau should not concentrate on the statements made by the Transnistrian leader Yevgeny Shevchuk, but on the opportunities that appeared after the administration in Tiraspol was changed, Radu Vrabie, program director at the Foreign Policy Association (APE), has told Info-Prim Neo. He referred to the Transnistrian leader’s intention to put the Russian ruble in free circulation in the region, in parallel with the Transnistrian rubble. “It is not necessarily a new idea. The former Tiraspol administration had such initiatives earlier, but did not implement them. Shevchuk’s statements form part mainly of a local context. He ran under a pro-Russia platform and the people wait for certain moves from him. The pro-Russia vector is an important one. But it is a long way from saying to doing,” said Radu Vrabie. He also said that he does not believe in extraordinary short-term results. “I don’t think the Transnistrian administration will be now more open for talks, but there will be a kind of warming that will enable the region to be more cooperative and transparent. If the Transnistrians possess more information and understand that the central administration takes care of them, this will stimulate the negotiation process,” said Radu Vrabie. In an interview, Yevgeny Shevchuk said he is considering the possibility of putting the Russian ruble in free circulation in the region. “We would like to have more Russian investors with clear plans and considerable resources. We need to create as many workplaces as possible,” said the Transnistrian leader, adding that a common currency with Russia will enable to save money, based on the exchange rate.