Ukraine maintains contacts with unrecognized Transnistria solely in coordination with Chisinau - Kuleba
Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that Ukraine is in contact with unrecognized Transnistria. This is done only in coordination with Chisinau.
According to Censor.NET, he said this in an interview with Newsmaker.
The minister explained that Ukraine, as a participant in the Transnistrian settlement process, "holds consultations with representatives of this process, with the exception of the aggressor country - Russia, and with the parties to the conflict - Chisinau and Tiraspol."
Kuleba noted that Ambassador-at-Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Paun Rohovei, as a representative of Ukraine, met with the leader of the de facto Transnistrian region of Moldova, Vadim Krasnoselski.
"Such meetings were held in close coordination with the Moldovan side and will continue to be held. These contacts are part of the Special Representative's work. It is important to emphasize that he closely coordinates his activities with Chisinau, and in this regard, there have never been and will never be any uncoordinated steps or initiatives on our part," the Foreign Minister said.
According to Kuleba, the Russian Federation has discredited itself as a mediator and guarantor in the negotiation process on the Transnistrian settlement in the international "5+2" format.
"Therefore, at this stage, the most effective tool is a dialogue in the "1+1" format, that is, direct negotiations and consultations between Chisinau and Tiraspol. ... Given the start of the negotiation process on Moldova and Ukraine's accession to the European Union, the Transnistrian settlement should become an issue on the European agenda, in particular in the security sphere," he concluded.
