Kosovo and Montenegro solutions cannot be used in Transnistria - OSCE Chairman

The solutions adopted in the cases of Kosovo and Montenegro are not compatible with Transnistria, and these kind of parallels are not justified in any way and will not be accepted by the European community, declared, Karel de Gucht, the Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Chairman of OSCE within a meeting with the president of the Republic of Moldova, Vladimir Voronin. In the same context, President Voronin reminded that the main political Treaty between the Republic of Moldova and Russia stipulates the recognition by the Russian part of the territorial integrity of Moldova and the boundaries existent until January 1, 1991. During the discussions, the main subject of which constituted the present level and the perspectives of the Transnistrian settlement, Vladimir Voronin and Karel de Gucht expressed their interest in recommencing the talks in the “5+2” format. They agreed on the fact that the central objective of these talks must be the special statute of Transnistria within the Republic of Moldova. The principles of territorial integrity and sovereignty of Moldova can not constitute a subject of negotiation, emphasized Karel de Gucht, mentioning that this position will be promoted firmly by the present presidency of OSCE, both in the process of negotiations and the consultations with the sides involved in the settlement process. As well, the OSCE chairman criticized the ideas of some leaders from Tiraspol, according to which the solutions applied in Kosovo and Montenegro could be used in the case of Transnistria. The collocutors referred to the positive effects of introducing a legal control on the Moldovan-Ukrainian border, namely on the Transnistrian segment, and as well implementing the inter-governmental agreement between Moldova and Ukraine on the goods’ transit across the Moldovan-Ukrainian border. De Gucht restated the peremptory position of OSCE, according to which the mentioned-above agreement is a document signed by the Governments of two sovereign states so the international community will treat it properly. The high official appreciated that the Ukrainian authorities still support the new customs regime, attitude that will be encouraged by OSCE and EU. As regards to the problem of Transnistria’s demilitarization, Vladimir Voronin and Karel de Gucht mentioned the necessity to continue the consultations on transforming the present peace-keeping mechanism, which proved to be inefficient, into a multinational peace-keeping mechanism. As well, the importance of unconditioned withdrawal of the troops and military arsenal of the Russian Federation from the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova was reconfirmed. The stationing of these troops violates the decisions of the OSCE Summit from Istanbul in 1999 and has a negative impact upon the settlement process. De Gucht underlined the availability of OSCE to offer the necessary resources so the Russian Federation could meet its engagements. In another context, Vladimir Voronin solicited the support of OSCE in the efforts of setting free the two political prisoners, Andrei Ivantoc and Tudor Petrov-Popa, according to the decision of the European Court for Human Rights, announced back in 2004. Karel de Gucht is paying an official visit to the Republic of Moldova from May 31to June 1. Yesterday, the high official met with the minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, Andrei Stratan, minister of Reintegration, Vasile Sova. Today de Gucht discussed with the representatives of the Joint Control Commission. Also a meeting with the separatist leader from Tiraspol Igor Smirnov is programmed. After the visit to Moldova, de Gucht will take off for Kiev.