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Transnistrian Conflict on March 29 – April 11, 2006

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The customs regime at the Moldovan-Ukrainian border

By 3 April the new Moldovan-Ukrainian border regime, according to which only goods accompanied by official Moldovan customs stamps are being let in through the Moldovan-Ukrainian border, has been in force for one month. Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vladimir Handogii, stated within a briefing on 31 March in Kiev that the non-transparent schemes of goods turnover at the Moldovan-Ukrainian border are no longer functioning, and the goods smuggling is being prevented by Ukrainian border guard services. According to Handogii, the situation at the customs check points on the Transnistrian border segment is stabilising, and the tension is decreasing. At the same time, despite the interdiction by the Transnistrian authorities, more Transnistrian economic agents register with the Moldovan authorities and thus obtain the right to carry out import-export operations legally.

Although the number of contraband cases is decreasing, the problem of accumulation of contraband goods on Transnistrian soil destined to Ukraine and other states remains. According to some statements made by the First Deputy Chair of the State Customs Service of Ukraine, Alexandr Fiodorov, only in March on the Transnistrian segment of the border were registered 53 cases of contraband worth of 435,000 Ukrainian Grivnas (approx. 86,000 USD). Earlier, the Ukrainian President, Victor Yushcenko, told the Russian publication Kommersant Vlasti that the contraband at the Moldovan-Ukrainian border is worth about 200–250 million dollars, and the damage caused by it to the Ukrainian budget is worth 100 million dollars per year. According to Ukrainian and Russian media, in most cases the contraband consists of alcoholic beverages, poultry and other food products.

The problem of smuggling on the Transnistrian segment of the Moldovan-Ukrainian border was also touched upon by General Ferenz Bamfi, Head of the EU Border Assessment Mission. During a briefing held on 6 April in Kiev, General Bamfi stated that the situation at the border is under the full control of the relevant state bodies of Ukraine, however, the problem of contraband remains a topical one mostly due to the interdiction imposed by Transnistrian authorities on enterprises from the region to register in Chisinau. Despite this, 106 Transnistrian economic agents have registered permanently or temporarily with the Moldovan State Registration Chamber, and the EU Border Mission monitors the way in which these are being reimbursed the VAT, General Bamfi said, according to Infotag.

On the other hand, the Tiraspol authorities continue to maintain that they are being subjected to an “economic blockade” on behalf of Ukraine and Moldova, and the region’s economic “ministry” claims that after 35 days of “blockade” the region has suffered losses worth of 89 million dollars. The statements by the Transnistrian authorities claiming that the region is on the verge of a humanitarian catastrophe have been rejected on a number of occasions by representatives of Ukrainian and Moldovan authorities, as well as those of the UE and OSCE. “There is no blockade> There is a self-blockade, because some cargoes belonging to the Transnistrian authorities are being let through. There is a «filtering» of interests”, stated Ukraine President in his interview with the Russian Kommersant Vlasti.

At the same time, the Russian media has announced that Russia prepares another lot of humanitarian assistance for Transnistria, as well as financial assistance for the secessionist region. On 3 April, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Mihail Kalminin, made a series of clarifications to the press regarding Russia’s reasons for sending humanitarian assistance to Transnistria. According to Kalminin, what Chisinau is actually trying to do is to deprive Tiraspol of its main income sources, provoke a social crisis in Transnistria to change the current regime with whom it “cannot agree”, and to “bring Transnistria under its own jurisdiction”. “Russian people’s readiness to help the elderly, children and all those in need should not be regarded solely as a humanitarian gesture, but first of all as univocal appeal to the leaderships of Moldova and Ukraine to align its actions to the general interests of preserving stability …peace and calm in the region,” Kalminin stated, according to the web site of the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Negotiations in the “5+2” format

The negotiations round planned for 4–5 April was delayed for an indefinite period, according to the OSCE Mission to Chisinau. The Head of Mission, William Hill, stated that the round has been postponed because of the contradictions that have emerged between the parties as a result of the introduction of the new customs regime at the Moldovan-Ukrainian border.

The Moldovan Reintegration Ministry published on 4 April a communique in which it states the need to resume the negotiations process and to continue the process of political settlement of the conflict.

On the other hand, on 4 April the Transnistrian secessionist leader, Igor Smirnov, stated within a meeting of the “inter-departmental anti-blockade committee” that “negotiations will not start until Transnistria is not given back the right to independent foreign commercial activity, as provided in the 1997 Memorandum.”.

The Congress of “deputies” of all levels of Transnistria

On 31 March in Tiraspol took place the “sixth congress of deputies of all levels” of Transnistria, convoked at the initiative of the “supreme soviet” in connection with the “crisis” situation created as a result of the “economic blockade” of Transnistria by Ukraine and Moldova. According to Transnistrian media, the “congress” was attended by 660 representatives of “deputy soviets” of all levels. The “congress” was opened by the so-called “president” of Transnistria, Igor Smirnov, who, among other things, called Russia to pass from political statements to concrete actions to avoid the liquidation of the “statehood of Transnistria”, which would be the purpose sought by Chisinau. The “congress” adopted a resolution, which proposes to organise a referendum regarding Transnistria’s future relations with Moldova. According to the Transnistrian press, the referendum could take place at the same time with the “presidential” elections planned for December 2006 or even earlier.

Chisinau authorities said that if this decision is implemented, the results of the so-called referendum will have the same results as the other “polls” organised by the break away authorities — they will not be recognised neither by Moldova nor by the international community. Ukraine’s Special Representative for the Transnistrian conflict, Ukraine Deputy Foreign Minister, Andrei Veselovski, qualified this decision as “provocative” for Ukraine. He refuted the statements made by the break away leader Smirnov that Ukraine’s decision to apply the unified customs regime has been due to the interests of some Ukrainian officials and was taken in the context of the parliamentary elections in Ukraine. “This is not decision dictated by interests, it is a decision of Ukrainian Government, geared towards the recovery of a normal customs regime at the European borders”, Veselovski said, quoted by Regnum.ru.

March 15–28, 2006 April 12–28, 2006