Tiraspol, 20 September. /Novosti Pridnestrovya/. In the first half of 2016, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the PMR continued activities to maintain a dialogue with the Moldovan side at the level of political representatives and expert (working) groups. The ministry was in regular communication with the external participants of the «Permanent conference on political issues in the Pridnestrovian settlement», aiming to provide objective information on the situation in the negotiation process and discriminatory steps by Moldova, says the foreign ministry's half-year report.
On 2−3 June a meeting of the «Permanent conference…» took place in Berlin. In the run-up to the meeting, Russia had put out a number of «non-paper» proposals which became the basis for a thorough discussion of the current problems in relations between Pridnestrovie and Moldova.
«Following the meeting, the sides signed a protocol containing specific commitments made by the sides to find sustainable solutions in a short time to the issues relating to politically motivated criminal cases, the improvement of the mechanism ensuring the implementation of the decisions reached in the negotiation process, the participation of Pridnestrovie-registered vehicles in international motor traffic, the use of education certificates issued in Pridnestrovie abroad. The document also addresses the issues of cooperation between the sides in the sphere of telecommunication, ecology and a number of other important aspects," says the report.
Another significant event was the signing of the Protocol of Cooperation in Hydrometeorology on 10 June. The document aims to update the earlier agreements reached in this sphere and particularly determines the order and procedure of exchanging hydrometeorological information between the relevant agencies of Pridnestrovie and Moldova. And on 15 June, the Protocol on cooperation between Pridnestrovie and the Republic of Moldova in the field of fishery regulation and the rational use of the biological resources of the Dniester was signed.
«The overall situation in the negotiation process with the Republic of Moldova remains tense and difficult," notes the MFA of the PMR. «The Moldavian side is continuing to evade from a dialogue with Pridnestrovie on the most sensitive issues of the bilateral agenda, in particular on criminal cases, motor transport, railway and customs interaction, abandoning under various pretexts the meetings of expert (working) groups.»
The report notes that finding a solution to the railway communication issue resulting from unilateral actions by Moldova and Ukraine is becoming increasingly urgent. «The Pridnestrovian side is taking steps on this track to resolve the crisis," the document underscores.
«The Moldovan side is continuing to disregard a number of substantive and constructive proposals by Pridnestrovie and the external participants in the negotiation process, which inevitably leads to a deterioration in the quality and results of interaction," notes the MFA of the PMR, pointing out that Pridnestrovie has intensified consultations with the external participants in the negotiation process and the international partners in order to reduce a conflict potential in relations with Moldova and return to an open and equal dialogue at the negotiating table.
