Ukraine Withdraws from International Negotiations on Transnistria

Kyiv will not participate in the negotiations on the conflict settlement between Transnistria and official Chisinau in the “5+2” format. Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Ambassador-at-Large Paun Rohovei said on Monday at a meeting with Transnistrian leader Vadim Krasnoselsky that his country would not participate in the Transnistrian settlement negotiations in the “5+2” format. The diplomat assured that Kyiv was committed to the principle of peaceful conflict settlement but stressed that Ukraine refused to take part in the international negotiation format because of Russia’s participation in it. The “5+2” format is an officially recognized negotiation platform. Chisinau and Tiraspol are represented as parties to the conflict, Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE as mediators, the EU and the USA as observers.