The newly elected President of Moldova Maya Sandu`s statements about the peacekeepers are dangerous because they can aggravate the Moldovan-Pridnestrovian conflict. This opinion was given by a member of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation Alexey Pushkov on the air of the TVC TV channel.
According to the Russian Senator, it is dangerous to raise the issue of withdrawing the peacekeepers without a mechanism for resolving the Moldovan-Pridnestrovian conflict.
“She (Maya Sandu - ed.) does not have a mechanism for resolving the issue. She has nothing to offer. Yet these statements are political, aggressive, I would say, convert the situation into an acute phase,” the politician noted, expressing concern that the words could be followed by actions in the form of restriction on Pridnestrovians` movement.
In his opinion, it will be possible to speak about the Russian peacekeepers` withdrawal after a complete settlement of the conflict.
“If Sandu has any idea of how to resolve the issue then let her talk about it. She says that the Russian peacekeepers must be withdrawn, and then what? There are half a million people who do not want to go to Moldova. Of these, 220,000 are our citizens, whom we must protect. Let her come up with a plan. But she is doing self-promotion. First of all, in the West,” Pushkov added.
The need to withdraw Russian peacekeepers from Pridnestrovie has been repeatedly stated by the President-elect of the Republic of Moldova, Maya Sandu. Her statements were supported by NATO. The organization's General Secretary, Jens Stoltenberg, said that Russia allegedly violated "the territorial integrity of Moldova" by deploying peacekeepers in Pridnestrovie.
During a recent press conference, Russian President Vladimir Putin noted that the peacekeepers` withdrawal was only possible after the Moldovan-Pridnestrovian conflict settlement.
Earlier, the President of the PMR Vadim Krasnoselsky said that any attempts to destroy the existing peace guarantee mechanism could lead to the Moldovan-Pridnestrovian conflict rollback to the situation of the early 90s. Due to the unsettled state and legal relations, Pridnestrovie and Moldova do not have a comprehensive agreement that would exclude the possibility of renewing direct military confrontation, Vadim Krasnoselsky explained.
Let's remind that in July 1992 Russia stopped the armed aggression of Moldova against Pridnestrovie. Prior to that, several conciliation commissions, including those with the participation of international representatives, tried to stop the war on the Dniester. However, the observer mission was unable to prevent the attacks of the Moldovan armed formations on Bendery in June 1992. The bloodshed only stopped with the Russian peacekeepers` arrival.
The peacekeeping operation under the auspices of the Russian Federation has been implemented in Pridnestrovie since 1992 on the basis of interstate agreements. It is recognized as one of the most successful in history: hostilities have not resumed since 1992. Apart from the Russian Federation, the parties to the conflict - the PMR and the Republic of Moldova, as well as a group of military observers from Ukraine, are involved. The peacekeeping contingent of the Russian Federation is formed from the Operational Group of Russian Forces in Pridnestrovie.
According to the existing agreements, the peacekeeping operation in Pridnestrovie should continue until the Moldovan-Pridnestrovian conflict complete settlement.
