OSCE Qualifies the Incident from Varnita as a Dangerous Action

The OSCE mission qualifies the temporary seizure by the Transnistrian militia of the river port from Varnita as a dangerous unilateral action of the Transnistrian authorities in the Security Zone. In a declaration, quoted by Info-Prim Neo, in which the mission expresses its deep concern about this incident, OSCE considers the action could have led to a direct confrontation between Transnistrian militiamen and Moldovan police. The Mission commends the Moldovan side for its restrained reaction and urges responsible Transnistrian authorities to refrain from any further militia actions in relation to the river port in Varnita. The quoted source proposes to the authorities from Tiraspol to seek for solutions that would include the control or use of the river port through the Joint Control Commission and other established mechanisms. The Transnistrian militia seized the river port from Varnita on April 21. The authorities from Tiraspol justify their actions by the necessity to halt the theft of the port’s goods that they consider a subdivision of the port of Bender, subordinated to the Transnistrian regime. The authorities from Chisinau state the port is rented by a Moldavian commercial firm, does not submit to the port from Bender and is under the jurisdiction of the Republic of Moldova as the entire Varnita village.