"The official launch of the joint Moldovan-Ukrainian Kuchurgan checkpoint, located on the Ukrainian territory, on July 17 is regrettable. Certain Transnistria’s concerns regarding such step, taken by Chisinau and Kiev without consultations with Tiraspol, were thusly ignored. Transnistria rightly points out that such campaign … runs counter to the agreements reached during the Transnistrian settlement," Kozhin told a briefing.
The official added that all disputes should only be resolved at the negotiation table, and that the actions of one conflicting side should not harm the interests of the other side.
In February, Kiev and Chisinau reached an agreement to ramp up the establishment of joint customs control points at Ukraine's border with Transnistria. The plan outlines the formation of five international entry points and eight points of interstate significance. Kuchurgan has been set to be the first customs control point to open in line with the agreement.
The length of Moldova-Ukraine border is 1,222 kilometers (759 miles), 454 kilometers of which constitutes the de facto border shared by Transnistria and Ukraine.
Transnistria, a region with a predominantly Russian and Ukrainian population, broke away from the Soviet Republic of Moldova in 1990, fearing the country might seek to reunify with neighboring Romania. The move triggered a war that ended in a ceasefire in July 1992, but with no resolution to the conflict.
