Marko Shevcenko: Ukraine, ready to offer support to the Republic of Moldova, but will no longer participate in negotiations with Russia in the "5+2" format
Ukraine could offer, upon request, any kind of help to Chisinau in case complications arise in the Transnistrian problem, according to Ukraine's ambassador to the Republic of Moldova, Marko Shevcenko, reports DW. He also stated that Ukraine will no longer sit down at the negotiating table in the 5+2 format regarding the settlement of the Transnistrian dispute.
Ukraine respects the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Republic of Moldova and will not make unilateral decisions regarding the transnistriam region, but in case of necessity it will promptly react to the first official step of the Government in Chisinau, said the Ambassador of Ukraine to our country, Marko Shevchenko.
The diplomat said that with regard to the settlement of the Transnistrian conflict, the "5+2" format involving the OSCE, Russia, Ukraine, Chisinau and Tiraspol + the European Union and the United States of America as observers can no longer work, because Ukraine will not never sit at the same negotiating table with Russia again.
According to the ambassador, by invading Ukraine, Russia has compromised itself as a mediator, and Chisinau and its partners must identify a new format.
Earlier, the head of Russian diplomacy, Serghei Lavrov, said that the process of resolving the Transnistrian conflict in the "5+2" format, in which Russia is both a guarantor and a mediator, has been frozen, and the West does not want to convene it. The 5+2 format of political negotiations regarding the settlement of the Transnistrian conflict, which was put on hiatus since 2019, is officially not cancelled, the Deputy Prime Minister for Reintegration, Oleg Serebrian, recently declared on Radio Moldova. According to him, the return to this political format is conditioned by the improvement of relations between Moscow and Kiev. Oleg Serebrian also said that maintaining dialogue, stability and firmness regarding the gradual reintegration process of the country remain priority actions for 2024.
We remind you that previously the president of the country Maia Sandu declared that the authorities have a vision regarding the reunification of the country. According to the head of state, in the new format to be created, the European Union will have a much more important role, because the Republic of Moldova will become a member state of the community block.
We remind that Ukraine closed the border on the Transnistrian segment from the first day of the Russian invasion, and according to the authorities in Kiev, the crossing points of the Moldovan-Ukrainian border, on this section, will be opened once the security situation in Ukraine is stable.
