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Transnistrian Conflict on February 17 – March 4, 2007
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e-journal #90 |
Appointment of a new EU Special Representative for Moldova
On 15 February 2007, the European Council appointed Kalman Mizsei as the new EU Special Representative for Moldova. Kalman Mizsei will replace Adriaan Jacobovits de Szeged, who concluded his mandate at the end of February 2007.
Javier Solana, the EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, saluted the decision of the Council to appoint Kalman Mizsei, and expressed hope that Mr Mizsei will contribute to a greater EU engagement with Moldova, in particular with regard to the Transnistrian conflict settlement. “Moldova is now a direct neighbour of the EU and it is high time to find a viable and lasting solution to this conflict”, Javier Solana stated.
Kalman Mizsei was born in 1955 in Hungary and until 2006 he was Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS of the United Nations Development Programme.
The mandate of the new EU Special Representative covers principally the EU contribution to the peaceful settlement of the Transnistrian conflict, but also includes some new fields, such as the EU contribution to strengthening of democratic institutions, the rule of law and the respect for fundamental rights and freedoms in Moldova, the promotion of good relations between the EU and Moldova on the basis of common values and interests, assistance in combating trafficking in human beings and weapons and other goods from and through Moldova, etc.
It is worth mentioning that during the same period the European Council extended the travel ban for 17 Transnistrian leaders; the candidate countries, the countries of Stabilisation and Association Process, EFTA and EEA aligned themselves to this decision.
Chisinau questions the impartiality and constructivism of the Russian Federation
The Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration issued a press statement in which it expressed concern regarding a commentary by the Russian Foreign Ministry which called the Transnistrian leader, Igor Smirnov, the “president of Transnistria”. The commentary refers to the meeting between the Russian Foreign Minister Serghei Lavrov and Smirnov on 20 February in Moscow, during which the two discussed about the need to solve the customs and transport issues that emerged in March 2006. According to the commentary, identification of “compromises” with the Moldovan side on these issues would lead to the emergence of the necessary conditions for the resumption of the Transnistrian settlement process.
Moldovan Foreign Ministry has regretted the practice whereby Russian state structures qualify representatives of the break away entity as “president” and “foreign ministry”, which is but an attempt to legitimise the unrecognised authorities. In this context, the Moldovan Foreign Ministry stated that “the use of such propaganda methods arises bewilderment and natural suspicion regarding the impartiality and constructivism of Russia, as well as its capacity to act as a mediator in the Transnistrian settlement process, hence it would be more reasonable to give them up”.
It is worth mentioning that according to a press communique of the Presidency, President Vladimir Voronin met on 3 March 2007 with the Deputy Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Yuri Zubakov, to discuss the prospects of the Transnistrian conflict settlement. The communique does not offer any further details regarding the meeting.
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