CHISINAU, Moldova (AP) — A Moldovan official says Russian peacekeepers stationed at a checkpoint in a separatist region where an 18-year-old man was fatally shot will no longer carry arms.
Deputy Prime Minister Eugen Crapov said Wednesday the number of Russian peacekeepers will also be reduced from seven to four at the checkpoint in Trans-Dniester where the man was shot on Jan. 1.
Crapov says a joint decision was made by the 1,500-member peacekeeping force, of which 500 are Russian, with the rest from Moldova and Trans-Dniester.
Trans-Dniester broke away in 1990 over fears that Moldova planned to reunite with Romania.
Moldova’s Foreign Minister Iurie Leanca on Tuesday criticized Russia’s ambassador to Moldova, Valery Kuzmin, for what he said were comments about the shooting that could inflame the situation.
