30 Oct 2017 21:06

Transdniestria negotiators could meet in 5+2 format in Vienna in late November

CHISINAU. Oct 30 (Interfax) - A new 5+2 meeting on the Transdniestrian conflict could take place in Vienna in late November, a Moldovan government spokesperson told Interfax on Monday after Prime Minister Pavel Filip's meeting with the mediators (the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Russia and Ukraine) and observers (the European Union and the United states) of the negotiating process.

Meeting on the eve of the OSCE ministerial meeting in Vienna, the parties to the Transdniestria dialogue noted the emerging possibilities of a meeting in the 5+2 format, the spokesperson said.

Positive achievements included a consensus over the opening of traffic on the bridge across the Dniestr river between the villages of Bychok and Gura Bicului, and Moldova recognizing the validity of Transdniestrian education diplomas, the spokesperson said.

"We are keen on Transdniestrian students to be able to continue their education anywhere, including in EU countries," Filip said.

The meeting also focused on progress on the registration of Transdniestrian transport vehicles, providing fixed-line telephone communications on both sides of the Dniestr, and transportation of people and goods by train via Transdniestria.

The attendees identified the following priorities: Transdniestria allowing the normal functioning of Moldovan schools teaching in Latin script; providing Moldovan farmers access to their lands beyond the Tiraspol-Ribnita highway; and the elimination of barriers to the movement of people and goods between the two banks of the Dniestr.