A source informed Sputnik that Moldovan politicians, along with experts, and diplomats from the United States, the EU, and Ukraine are scheduled to address the Transnistrian settlement issues in Moldova on April 11. Notably, delegates from Transnistria and Russia have been left out of these discussions. Moldovan Deputy Prime Minister for Reintegration, Oleg Serebrian, mentioned that the talks with Tiraspol have reached a standstill, prompting Chisinau to proceed with independent decision-making efforts, effectively ditching the negotiation format.
“The president of the PMR [Pridnestrovian Moldovan Republic] considers its arrangement to be Europe's big mistake, which will nullify the work of the “5+2” format and support Moldova’s pressure on Transnistria,” the Transnistria presidential press service said.
Krasnoselsky's press service revealed that the regional leader made this statement at a meeting with EU envoy for Transnistrian settlement talks, Dorota Dlouchy-Suliga.
The talks on Transnistria in the “5+2” format include discussions between Chisinau and Tiraspol as the conflicting parties, with Russia, Ukraine, and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) acting as mediators. The European Union and the United States participate as observers. The most recent round of talks in this format was held in Bratislava on October 9-10, 2019.
Transnistria, where 60 percent of the population consists of Russians and Ukrainians, has aimed to secede from Moldova even before the Soviet Union's collapse. This desire stemmed from fears that Moldova would unite with Romania due to rising nationalism. In 1992, following an unsuccessful attempt by Moldovan authorities to address the issue through force, Transnistria effectively became a territory beyond Chisinau's control.