According to him, the EU and the North Atlantic Alliance are “killing” the “5+2” negotiation format to deal with the Transnistrian problem. “In essence, Moldova has suffered the fate of the next victim in the hybrid war started by the West against Russia,” Lavrov said during the Ministerial meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
In the “5+2” format, Chisinau and Tiraspol participate as parties to the conflict, Russia, Ukraine, OSCE – as mediators, the European Union and the United States – as observers. The last round of negotiations took place in October 2019.
Lavrov also recalled the 2003 memorandum of the head of the presidential administration Dmitry Kozak, which envisaged the federalization of Moldova. The Transnistrian Republic of Moldova and Gagauzia were supposed to remain part of it, but would have a special status. The minister stated that the memorandum would allow to “safely settle the situation” already 20 years ago, but the document already initialed by Chisinau and Tiraspol was “unceremoniously torpedoed” by the EU and NATO.
Lavrov hinted that Moldova might not be on the last list of “victims”. “Any country where Western emissaries, foundations and so-called non-governmental organizations are currently active should think about it,” he said, recalling that the 2014 coup d’état and eight years of combat operations in Donbas were necessary for the creation of an “anti-Russian bridgehead” in Ukraine.
For the first time, Transnistria announced its desire to withdraw from Moldova already during the USSR, in 1989. In 1992, however, the fight between Tiraspol and Chisinau turned into an armed conflict that claimed around 1,000 lives. Combat operations were stopped after Russian military intervention, its troops are still present in the region. Moldova has repeatedly requested Moscow to withdraw its military personnel, which the Republic perceives as “occupation forces” and “threats to national security”. A resolution with a similar appeal was adopted at the UN, but Russia refused to comply with it, The Moscow Times reports.
In February of this year, Lavrov already spoke about the fact that Moldova could become the “next Ukraine” because its president Maia Sandu is “hurling” at NATO. Chisinau, on the other hand, accused Moscow of wanting to organize a coup d’état in the country. Sandu stated that Russia invaded Ukraine with the intention of “creating a military land corridor to the Republic of Moldova, which would create prerequisites for an immediate violent change of the constitutional order and the elimination of our statehood.”
In the new national security strategy, the authorities directly called Russia a “threat” and noted the strategic partnership with NATO members. Also, last year, Moldova obtained the status of a candidate for membership in the European Union.
2023-11-30 19:24:00
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