The prime ministers of Moldova and Ukraine are to meet in Odessa in early September. Vladimir Groysman and Pavel Filip will discuss the development of bilateral relations, the media reports.
«In early September I meet the prime minister of the Republic of Moldova, Pavel Filip. We have a good dynamic of interstate interaction and are working on a range of large-scale joint projects. We have agreed to continue the dialogue soon on the margins of the International Transport Week in Odessa, which starts in Odessa on 8 September 2017," the Ukrainian prime minister wrote on his Facebook page.
It is easy to guess what joint projects will be discussed at the meeting. It has been revealed by Moldova's deputy foreign minister, Daniela Morari.
«We are cooperating with Ukraine as part of the EUBAM mission on joint control of the Moldo-Ukrainian border. Soon we'll open a bridge in Bronnitsa, which will have a direct impact on the development of transport and trade," she underscored.
According to Morari, it is also important to develop cooperation between the two countries in establishing joint border and customs control.
In mid-July, Ukraine and Moldova unilaterally established joint customs and border control at the Kuchurang-Prvomayskoye border crossing, which serves over 70% of all Pridnestrovian trade operations.
Kishinev had repeatedly stated that over the first six months only exports by Pridnestrovian economic entities would be subject to control. But by the end of July, the Moldovan side had launched a mechanism monitoring persons who come to Pridnestrovie to Ukraine in Kushurgany. In the event of the refusal of a foreign citizen to have a date-stamp mark in the passport, Moldovan border police officers warns him that after 72 hours of stay in Moldova without getting registered at the Bureau of Migration and Asylum of Moldova, he will be brought to administrative liability.
The unilateral actions of Moldova and Ukraine to establish a joint crossing point arouse indignation both in Pridnestrovie and Russia. Attempts to raise this issue at «5+2» meetings are blocked by Moldova and the OSCE.
Last Wednesday the political representatives of Kishinev and Tiraspol, Vitaly Ignatyev and Gheorghe Balan, held the first meeting after five months of recess. During the meeting, the Pridnestrovian diplomat handed over a note of protest to his colleague in connection with the installation of joint Moldo-Ukrainian posts at the Pridnestrovian border.
«If someone has any illusion that this topic would not be discussed, I assure you that it will be discussed at all levels of the negotiating process until the restrictions are lifted," Ignatyev said after the talks.
