Moscow - Russia's deputy prime minister and presidential envoy for Transdniestria, Dmitry Rogozin, confirmed at a meeting with Transdniestrian leader Yevgeny Shevchuk that the status of the Russian-led peacekeeping mission in the region remains firm.
“I met with President of Transdniestria Shevchuk at the Russian House
of Government today,” Rogozin said on his Twitter page on Monday.
“We discussed issues facing the republic’s economic life and social
support for the residents of this independent republic, which is home to
150,000 Russian citizens, in detail. I confirmed the inviolability of
the status of Russia’s peacekeeping mission in this region to the
guest,” the deputy premier said.
Rogozin also said he had informed Shevchuk of the main results of Moldovan Prime Minister Vlad Filat’s visit to Russia.
Filat and Shevchuk are expected to meet later this week to analyze
the results achieved by joint expert commissions in charge of promoting
confidence building measures between the sides in the conflict.
Filat told journalists on Monday that he and Shevchuk agreed to hold
this meeting during a telephone conversation this past weekend. The
Moldovan prime minister, however, declined to name any date for the
meeting.
Chisinau has been insisting on changing the status of Russia’s
peacekeeping mission in the region. Moldovan government officials
visited Moscow earlier. Moldova’s Foreign Affairs and European
Integration Minister Iurie Leanca told Interfax that he saw no reasons
for the military peacekeepers to remain in the security zone of the
Transdniestrian conflict.
“Chisinau has plenty of arguments to convince its partners from
Russia that there are no reasons to maintain the current state of
affairs. It is time to demilitarize this zone. It is no longer dangerous
there, which points to the absence of reasons to continue maintaining
order there by military means. I am certain of it and hope that there is
not a single sensible person who believes in a possible repeat of the
1992 events,” Leanca said.
