Politics
Backroom Deals Can’t Solve Transdniester Dispute
Reading Time: 5 minutesRussian President Dmitry Medvedev met in Moscow this week with Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin and the head of the unrecognized breakaway region of Transdniester, Igor Smirnov.
By Vlad Spanu
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev met in Moscow this week with Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin and the head of the unrecognized breakaway region of Transdniester, Igor Smirnov. The final statement of the tripartite talks contains no legal commitments, but the meeting itself could have negative political implications for Moldova.
The joint statement praised the Russian-commanded peacekeeping troops — the same forces that Moldovan Foreign Minister Andrei Stratan told an OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in December 2004 were stationed on Moldovan territory "against the political will of the Moldovan constitutional authorities in defiance of unanimously recognized international norms and principles." The statement, however, does express a joint desire by the three leaders that the peacekeeping force be placed under a mandate from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
Three Agendas
Each of the three men went into the March 18 meeting with his own agenda. Voronin, who wanted the meeting most, was eager for a photo-op with Medvedev, who is the second-most-popular politician in Moldova after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, ahead of Moldova’s April 5 parliamentary elections. Voronin’s Communist Party counts heavily on the votes of ethnic Russians and on those of ethnic Moldovans whose jobs depend on Russia.
Medvedev, for his part, was seeking to rehabilitate Russia’s reputation in the wake of August’s war with Georgia, to show the world that Moscow can play a mediating role as a good neighbor. But in doing so, Russia has downplayed the 5+2 negotiating format (which includes the European Union, the United States, the OSCE, Russia, and Ukraine, in addition to Moldova and Transdniester) and pushed Moldova toward direct talks with Tiraspol under the Kremlin’s auspices.
As for Smirnov, he is always ready to participate in whatever meetings in whatever format Moscow dictates. He is a Russian citizen who was sent to Moldova in 1987 in order to foment and lead a separatist movement to counterbalance the nationalist movement that was emerging in Chisinau. And he accomplished this task brilliantly. The separatist protest on the eastern side of the Nistru River culminated in an armed uprising that turned into a bloody conflict in the summer of 1992. Moldova’s central leadership and armed forces were weak and soon yielded to Russian-backed troops and security forces. The Moldavian Trans-Nistrian Republic (MTR), also called Transnistria or Transdniester, was born.
Participant Or ‘Guarantor’?
When a cease-fire agreement was signed on July 7, 1992, by Russian President Boris Yeltsin and Moldovan President Mircea Snegur, it seemed clear that Russia and Moldova were the two parties to this conflict. This interpretation was reinforced by a 2004 ruling of the European Court of Human Rights and by a 2006 study of the conflict by the New York City Bar Association titled "Thawing a Frozen Conflict: Legal Aspects of the Separatist Crisis in Moldova."
Nevertheless, Moscow has insisted that its pawn, the Tiraspol government, not Russia, was a party to the conflict. As in the cases of Georgia’s breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, Russia declared itself a "mediator" in Moldova, later elevating itself to the status of "guarantor of the peace." Russia has used all its available political and economic levers to compel Moldova to accept these terms.
Every time Moldova made concessions in the dispute, Russia consolidated its position. In 1994, Moldova accepted a Russian proposal on "synchronization" that would have made a Russian troop withdrawal contingent on a status agreement for the secessionist region. In 1997, the so-called Primakov memorandum (named after its promoter, Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov) introduced the concept of a "common state," which was ultimately interpreted differently by all parties and led to no solutions. The so-called Kyiv document of 2002, proposed by Moscow, stipulated the federalization of Moldova, a concept that was renewed in 2003 with the infamous Kozak memorandum (named for Dmitry Kozak, an aide to then Russian President Putin). That proposal was rejected by Voronin at the last minute under the pressure of street protests in Chisinau and on advice from the EU and the United States.
Moldova In 3-D
In 2004, nongovernmental Moldovan experts, working with Western analysts, offered an alternative plan for a federated Moldova. Called the "3-D strategy" (decriminalization, demilitarization, and democratization), this document has gained broad support in Moldova. The plan called for strengthening the then-existing five-party negotiating format (Russia, Ukraine, and the OSCE, plus Moldova and Transdniester) with a 3+1+3 format (Russia, Ukraine, and Romania plus Molodova plus the EU, the United States, and the OSCE), thereby including the West and excluding Transdniester.
It also called for a border-monitoring mission along the Ukrainian-Moldovan border, a supervising authority, and an international civil provisional administration that would implement postconflict recovery plans.
The 3-D strategy was used by the Moldovan parliament to formulate three resolutions on the conflict that were adopted in June 2005 and the law on the basic principles of the special status of the localities on the eastern bank of the Nistru, which was adopted in July 2005. That year, Ukraine became actively involved in the negotiating process, putting forward its own plans and initiatives. These, however, largely focused on democratization (through elections in Transdniester), which was counterproductive since the processes of decriminalization and demilitarization were stalled. As a result, any elections held could hardly be considered democratic.
Since 2005, both the United States and the EU have also stepped up their involvement, notably with the opening of the EU Border Assistance Mission (EUBAM) in December 2005.
Western Interest
Russia reluctantly accepted the West at the negotiating table, a reluctance driven by Moscow’s view that the former Soviet republics form a special sphere of interest for Russia. Moscow also was unwilling to concede that after Romania joined NATO and the EU, Moldova had more in common with the West than with Russia, with which it does not have a common border.
When Moldova and Ukraine began implementing customs regulations in accordance with international norms in 2006, Russia responded by applying economic sanctions against Moldova. Moscow imposed an embargo on the importation of Moldovan wines and agricultural goods, an action that not only harmed Moldova, but also was a setback for Russia’s bid to join the World Trade Organization (WTO).
No matter what government takes power after the April 5 elections in Moldova or who the new parliament selects as president, Moldova clearly needs to, as they say these days, push the reset button in relations with Russia.
Chisinau will have to stick solidly to the principles of international norms and agreements and push for Moscow to fulfill the commitments it has made within the framework of international organizations. It must reject a negotiating format that has no transparency for Moldova’s Western partners. The meeting in Moscow yesterday was a mistake — it was wrong for Moldova to leave the room where its friends and neighbors were seated in order to deal with Russia behind the scenes. And most importantly, the 3-D strategy must remain Moldova’s overarching framework for resolving the Transdniester dispute.
Vlad Spanu is the president of the Moldova Foundation in Washington. He served as a senior Moldovan diplomat between 1992 and 2001 and co-authored, with Andrei Brezianu, "The Historical Dictionary of Moldova." The views expressed in this commentary are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of RFE/RL
A new football club has earned a leading place in the UEFA Champions League groups and starred in the headlines of worldwide football news yesterday. The Football Club Sheriff Tiraspol claimed a win with the score 2-1 against Real Madrid on the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid. That made Sheriff Tiraspol the leader in Group D of the Champions League, including the football club in the groups of the most important European interclub competition for the first time ever.
International media outlets called it a miracle, a shock and a historic event, while strongly emphasizing the origin of the team and the existing political conflict between the two banks of the Dniester. “Football club from a pro-Russian separatist enclave in Moldova pulls off one of the greatest upsets in Champions League history,” claimed the news portals. “Sheriff crushed Real!” they said.
Moldovans made a big fuss out of it on social media, splitting into two groups: those who praised the team and the Republic of Moldova for making history and those who declared that the football club and their merits belong to Transnistria – a problematic breakaway region that claims to be a separate country.
Both groups are right and not right at the same time, as there is a bunch of ethical, political, social and practical matters that need to be considered.
Is it Moldova?
First of all, every Moldovan either from the right or left bank of Dniester (Transnistria) is free to identify himself with this achievement or not to do so, said Vitalie Spranceana, a sociologist, blogger, journalist and urban activist. According to him, boycotting the football club for being a separatist team is wrong.
At the same time, “it’s an illusion to think that territory matters when it comes to football clubs,” Spranceana claimed. “Big teams, the ones included in the Champions League, have long lost their connection both with the countries in which they operate, and with the cities in which they appeared and to which they linked their history. […] In the age of globalized commercial football, teams, including the so-called local ones, are nothing more than global traveling commercial circuses, incidentally linked to cities, but more closely linked to all sorts of dirty, semi-dirty and cleaner cash flows.”
What is more important in this case is the consistency, not so much of citizens, as of politicians from the government who have “no right to celebrate the success of separatism,” as they represent “the national interests, not the personal or collective pleasures of certain segments of the population,” believes the political expert Dionis Cenusa. The victory of FC Sheriff encourages Transnistrian separatism, which receives validation now, he also stated.
“I don’t know how it happens that the “proud Moldovans who chose democracy”, in their enthusiasm for Sheriff Tiraspol’s victory over Real Madrid, forget the need for total and unconditional withdrawal of Russian troops from Transnistria!” declared the journalist Vitalie Ciobanu.
Nowadays, FC Sheriff Tiraspol has no other choice than to represent Moldova internationally. For many years, the team used the Moldovan Football Federation in order to be able to participate in championships, including international ones. That is because the region remains unrecognised by the international community. However, the club’s victory is presented as that of Transnistria within the region, without any reference to the Republic of Moldova, its separatist character being applied in this case especially.
Is it a victory?
In fact, FC Sheriff Tiraspol joining the Champions League is a huge image breakthrough for the Transnistrian region, as the journalist Madalin Necsutu claimed. It is the success of the Tiraspol Club oligarchic patrons. From the practical point of view, FC Sheriff Tiraspol is a sports entity that serves its own interests and the interests of its owners, being dependent on the money invested by Tiraspol (but not only) oligarchs.
Here comes the real dilemma: the Transnistrian team, which is generously funded by money received from corruption schemes and money laundering, is waging an unequal fight with the rest of the Moldovan football clubs, the journalist also declared. The Tiraspol team is about to raise 15.6 million euro for reaching the Champions League groups and the amounts increase depending on their future performance. According to Necsutu, these money will go directly on the account of the club, not to the Moldovan Football Federation, creating an even bigger gab between FC Sheriff and other football clubs from Moldova who have much more modest financial possibilities.
“I do not see anything useful for Moldovan football, not a single Moldovan player is part of FC Sheriff Tiraspol. I do not see anything beneficial for the Moldovan Football Federation or any national team.”
Is it only about football?
FC Sheriff Tiraspol, with a total estimated value of 12.8 million euros, is controlled by Victor Gusan and Ilya Kazmala, being part of Sheriff Holding – a company that controls the trade of wholesale, retail food, fuels and medicine by having monopolies on these markets in Transnistria. The holding carries out car trading activities, but also operates in the field of construction and real estate. Gusan’s people also hold all of the main leadership offices in the breakaway region, from Parliament to the Prime Minister’s seat or the Presidency.
The football club is supported by a holding alleged of smuggling, corruption, money laundering and organised crime. Moldovan media outlets published investigations about the signals regarding the Sheriff’s holding involvement in the vote mobilization and remuneration of citizens on the left bank of the Dniester who participated in the snap parliamentary elections this summer and who were eager to vote for the pro-Russian socialist-communist bloc.
Considering the above, there is a great probability that the Republic of Moldova will still be represented by a football club that is not identified as being Moldovan, being funded from obscure money, growing in power and promoting the Transnistrian conflict in the future as well.
Photo: unknown
Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova, Natalia Gavrilita, together with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nicu Popescu, pay an official visit to Brussels, between September 27-28, being invited by High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell Fontelles.
Today, Prime Minister had a meeting with Charles Michel, President of the European Council. The Moldovan PM thanked the senior European official for the support of the institution in strengthening democratic processes, reforming the judiciary and state institutions, economic recovery and job creation, as well as increasing citizens’ welfare. Natalia Gavrilita expressed her confidence that the current visit laid the foundations for boosting relations between the Republic of Moldova and the European Union, so that, in the next period, it would be possible to advance high-level dialogues on security, justice and energy. Officials also exchanged views on priorities for the Eastern Partnership Summit, to be held in December.
“The EU is open to continue to support the Republic of Moldova and the ambitious reform agenda it proposes. Moldova is an important and priority partner for us,” said Charles Michel.
Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita also met with Paolo Gentiloni, European Commissioner for Economy, expressing her gratitude for the support received through the OMNIBUS macro-financial assistance program. The two officials discussed the need to advance the recovery of money from bank fraud, to strengthen sustainable mechanisms for supporting small and medium-sized enterprises in Moldova, and to standardize the customs and taxes as one of the main conditions for deepening cooperation with the EU in this field.
Additionally, Prime Minister spoke about the importance of the Eastern Partnership and the Deep Free Trade Agreement, noting that the Government’s policies are aimed at developing an economic model aligned with the European economic model, focused on digitalization, energy efficiency and the green economy.
A common press release of the Moldovan Prime Minister with High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the Commission, Josep Borrell Fontelles, took place today, where the agenda of Moldova’s reforms and the main priorities to focus on in the coming months were presented: judiciary reform; fighting COVID-19 pandemic; promoting economic recovery and conditions for growth and job creation; strengthening state institutions and resilience of the country.
“I am here to relaunch the dialogue between my country and the European Union. Our partnership is strong, but I believe there is room for even deeper cooperation and stronger political, economic and sectoral ties. I am convinced that this partnership is the key to the prosperity of our country and I hope that we will continue to strengthen cooperation.”
The Moldovan delegation met Didier Reynders, European Commissioner for Justice. Tomorrow, there are scheduled common meetings with Oliver Varhelyi, European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement, Adina Valean, European Commissioner for Transport and Kadri Simson, European Commissioner for Energy.
Prime Minister will also attend a public event, along with Katarina Mathernova, Deputy Director-General for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations.
Photo: gov.md
Politics
Promo-LEX about Maia Sandu’s UN speech: The president must insist on appointing a rapporteur to monitor the situation of human rights in Transnistria
The President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, pays an official visit to New York, USA, between September 21-22. There, she participates in the work of the United Nations General Assembly. According to a press release of the President’s Office, the official will deliver a speech at the tribune of the United Nations.
In this context, the Promo-LEX Association suggested the president to request the appointment of a special rapporteur in order to monitor the situation of human rights in the Transnistrian region. According to Promo-LEX, the responsibility for human rights violations in the Transnistrian region arises as a result of the Russian Federation’s military, economic and political control over the Tiraspol regime.
“We consider it imperative to insist on the observance of the international commitments assumed by the Russian Federation regarding the withdrawal of the armed forces and ammunition from the territory of the country,” the representatives of Promo-LEX stated. They consider the speech before the UN an opportunity “to demand the observance of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the Russian Federation with reference to this territory which is in its full control.”
“It is important to remember about the numerous cases of murder, torture, ill-treatment, forced enlistment in illegal military structures, the application of pseudo-justice in the Transnistrian region, all carried out under the tacit agreement of the Russian Federation. These findings stem from dozens of rulings and decisions issued by the European Court of Human Rights, which found that Russia is responsible for human rights violations in the region.”
The association representatives expressed their hope that the president of the country would give priority to issues related to the human rights situation in the Transnistrian region and would call on relevant international actors to contribute to guaranteeing fundamental human rights and freedoms throughout Moldova.
They asked Maia Sandu to insist on the observance of the obligation to evacuate the ammunition and the military units of the Russian Federation from the territory of the Republic of Moldova, to publicly support the need for the Russian Federation to implement the ECtHR rulings on human rights violations in the Transnistrian region, and to request the appointment of an UN Human Rights Council special rapporteur to monitor the human rights situation in the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova.
**
The Promo-LEX Association concluded that 14 out of 25 actions planned within the National Action Plan for the years 2018–2022 concerning respecting human rights in Transnistria were not carried out by the responsible authorities.
The association expressed its concern and mentioned that there are a large number of delays in the planned results. “There is a lack of communication and coordination between the designated institutions, which do not yet have a common vision of interaction for the implementation of the plan.”
Promo-LEX requested the Government of the Republic of Moldova to re-assess the reported activities and to take urgent measures, “which would exclude superficial implementation of future activities and increase the level of accountability of the authorities.”
Photo: peacekeeping.un.org
“They are not needy, but they need help”. How Moldovan volunteers try to create a safe environment for the Ukrainian refugees
Reading Time: 3 minutesAt the Government’s ground floor, the phones ring constantly, the laptop screens never reach standby. In one...
#WorldForUkraine – a map that shows the magnitude of the world’s actions against Russian aggression
Reading Time: 2 minutesThe international community and volunteers from all over te world have launched #WorldForUkraine as a platform that...
How is Moldova managing the big influx of Ukrainian refugees? The authorities’ plan, explained
Reading Time: 3 minutesFrom 24th to 28th of February, 71 359 Ukrainian citizens entered the territory of Republic of Moldova....
Russia And Ukraine At The Beginning of 2022
Reading Time: 4 minutesThis opinion piece was written by Dr. Nicholas Dima. Dr. Dima was formerly a Professor of Geography and...
The man raising children on Nistru river
Reading Time: 7 minutesOn the Nistru, near the village of Varnița, a few colored pens with blue dots in the...
The village of the first astronomer in the Republic of Moldova
Reading Time: 5 minutesFrom eight in the morning till noon, every Thursday and Sunday, people lay their merchandise on the...
The prodigal son returns and turns his grandparents’ home in a tourist attraction on Nistru river
Reading Time: 7 minutesOn the road towards the school, a well-maintained rural house catches your eye, yellow stags painted on...
FC Sheriff Tiraspol victory: can national pride go hand in hand with political separatism?
Reading Time: 4 minutesA new football club has earned a leading place in the UEFA Champions League groups and starred...
Study// What is the reaction of authorities to journalistic investigations?
Reading Time: 3 minutes“People expect logical consequences when they see cases of undeclared assets, conflicts of interest, protectionism or proof...
Secretary General of CoE called on Moldova’s state institutions to avoid constitutional crisis. Politicians took it the way they wanted.
Reading Time: 3 minutesAt the beginning of this month, Speaker of Parliament, Zinaida Greceanii, sent a letter to Secretary General...