UPDATE 15.16:
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Moldova has stated that no foreign soldier illegally stationed in the country has the right to be on its territory.
“The Republic of Moldova has always demanded the complete and unconditional withdrawal of Russian troops from the left bank of the Dniester and the fulfillment of international commitments.
No foreign soldier illegally stationed in our country has the right to be here, and the Russian army must be fully and unconditionally withdrawn in accordance with the international commitments undertaken by the Russian Federation”, MFA stated.
Initial report:
The Bureau for Reintegration Policies of the Republic of Moldova contradicted the statements made by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky at the Munich Security Conference on the number of Russian soldiers staying in the Transnistrian region. According to the Bureau, the Ukrainian leader used old figures dating from 1998, IPN reports.
Contacted by IPN for a comment, Mariana Sary, senior consultant of the Bureau’s analytical and informational section, said that the Ukrainian leader used data available in the agreement signed in Odessa in 1998, which aimed to reduce the Russian military personnel in the Security Zone of the Republic of Moldova, and not the current number of Russian soldiers who are on the left side of the Nistru. The information presented by the Ukrainian leader coincides with the data specified in the 1998 document.
Mariana Sary added that at present, the Moldovan authorities cannot provide accurate data on the number of Russian servicemen in the Transnistrian region, but they will come back with a reaction to these statements.
According to the Ukrainian leader, Russia has withdrawn thousands of soldiers from the left bank of the Nistru to direct them to the front in Ukraine. In the past, their number was estimated at 5,500-6,000, but now it was reduced by half or even more. “We believe that today there are still about 2,500 soldiers there, but I, honestly, think there are yet about 1,000 – 1,500 Russians,” the Ukrainian President said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the remaining troops no longer play the same security role, but are mainly in charge of guarding weapons depots in the region.
“They took some of the soldiers there out. Most likely, they evacuated them by plane through Chisinau,” added Zelensky.
The Ukrainian leader noted that the partial withdrawal of Russian troops raises questions about the future of the separatist region and Moscow’s influence on it.
For now, there is no official information from Russia confirming the reduction of the military personnel in the Transnistrian region.
