Sandu: The Transdniestrian Conflict Settlement Must Be Peaceful

President Maia Sandu spoke in favor of a peaceful settlement of the Transdniestrian conflict through negotiations. She stated this during a meeting held on Thursday with mediators and observers in the process of the 3+2 Transdniestrian settlement (OSCE, Russia, Ukraine, as well as the United States and the European Union), infotag.md reported. "We discussed the situation with the pandemic and confirmed our readiness to continue to provide support, vaccines and equipment to support efforts to combat the pandemic on the left bank of the Dniester. We also talked about the human rights situation in the region and the need to ensure free movement between the banks," Sandu wrote on her Facebook page. Regarding the settlement process, she noted that it "must take place in a peaceful way, through dialogue, with respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova." "She reaffirmed the need to form a vision of a political solution to the conflict. This should be on the agenda of a full-fledged government formed after the early parliamentary elections in July," Sandu wrote. A delegation of participants in the 3+2 format arrived in Moldova to determine "further steps to improve the lives of citizens on both banks of the Dniester". It is headed by Thomas Mayr-Harting, Special Representative for the Transdniestrian Settlement Process of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office from Sweden. Over the course of several days, the format participants will hold a series of meetings on both banks of the Dniester. These 3+2 meetings were initiated by the Swedish OSCE Chairmanship to facilitate the resumption of 5+2 talks with the participation of Chisinau and Tiraspol. The Swedish Chairmanship plans to hold such a round of talks in September in Stockholm. The negotiation process in the "5+2" format has been frozen for over two years.