Leader of Moldova's breakaway region of Transnistria calls for joining Russian Federation
The President of the internationally unrecognized Pridnestrovian Moldovan Republic (PMR), Yevgeny Shevchuk, issued a decree on prepararion to join Russia. The document was published on the website of the Pridnestrovian leader.
The decree calls for the implementation of the outcomes of the republican referendum which took place on 17 September 2006. The regulatory act is necessary for the fulfillment of “the will of the people of Transnistria to join the Russian Federation.”
Shevchuk indicated that the top priority is to bring the legal system of the Republic into conformity with Russian legislation. According to him, the government of the PMR should create a special Commission dedicated to this within two weeks. According to the decree the Pridnestrovian leader will be provided with a concrete plan for synchronizing legislation by the 1st of November. It is noted that regulatory acts contradicting the Russian law will be identified as those that cannot be applied.
The Bureau of Reintegration of the Republic of Moldova, in turn, called Shevchuk’s decree invalid and provocative. “It was issued by an unconstitutional agency based on an illegally held referendum within the territory of the Republic Moldova,” the statement reads. According to Moldavian officials, the President’s initiative undermines efforts to resolve the conflict.
Transnistria declared independence in the early 1990’s. Russia provides the Republic economic assistance (according to expert estimates, the annual assistance is comparable with GDP of Transnistria which is about 1 billion dollars). At the same time, Russia has not yet disputed that the territory belongs to Moldova.