OSCE Mission in Moldova hails Chisinau-Tiraspol meeting to address customs duties

CHISINAU. Jan 16 (Interfax) - The OSCE Mission in Moldova hails the first meeting of 2024 between Chisinau and Tiraspol's representatives in the 1+1 format that seeks to facilitate the Transdniestrian settlement, the mission said in a statement.

"It is an important opportunity for constructive dialogue. At this 1+1, the sides will discuss the customs duties, which have shaken Transdniestrian public. The sides will also discuss Tiraspol's subsequent measures. The sides need both formal and informal conversations to keep the counterpart informed about each other's actions and intentions," the statement said.

"The most recent example is Chisinau's application of customs duties to Transdniestrian companies. Tiraspol did not know these customs payments would be required as of January 1. Keeping conversations going in good faith lowers the risk of unexpected escalation and increases the likelihood of resolving disputes peacefully and through dialogue," it said.

Moldovan Deputy Prime Minister for Reintegration Oleg Serebrian and unrecognized republic of Transdniestria's Foreign Minister Vitaly Ignatyev will meet in the 1+1 format at the OSCE office in Tiraspol on Tuesday.

In early January, the Moldovan Customs Service said that Transdniestrian economic agents would have to pay import duties on general terms starting from January 1, 2024. Thus, the benefits provided to Transdniestrian companies were cancelled.

The Reintegration Bureau of the Moldovan government's confirmed the information and said that Transdniestrian companies retained the following benefits, which are not enjoyed by companies on the western bank of the Dniester, such as exemption from VAT, which is 20% or 8%, exemption from excise tax, and preferential tariffs for customs duties under the free trade agreements with the CIS countries, the Moldova-EU Association Agreement, the Moldovan-Turkish Free Trade Agreement, the Central European Free Trade Agreement, the Moldovan-British Agreement on Strategic Partnership, Trade and Cooperation, and future free trade agreements with other countries.

Chisinau and Tiraspol's negotiators held several meetings in the 1+1 format in 2023. Ignatyev repeatedly refused to visit Chisinau, saying he might be arrested under the Moldovan law on preventing separatism.