BRUSSELS. Nov 28 (Interfax-Ukraine) - EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana believes the settlement in Transdniestria should not depend on the outcome of parliamentary elections there and supports the idea of monitoring the local defense industry.
"While we cannot expect overnight democratization, the settlement process should not be held hostage by any given future event. We need to see where movement towards a settlement can be realistically found," he said in an interview with Interfax and Ukrinform agencies ahead of the Ukraine-EU summit.
"The Ukrainian settlement plan for Transdniestria builds on the idea of democratic elections to the Transdniestrian Supreme Soviet. The precondition for such elections are not there yet," he said.
"There is hope of an assessment mission being deployed to evaluate what would be needed for internationally organized free and fair elections," Solana said.
Speaking of the OSCE proposed monitoring of the Transdniestrian military-industrial complex, he said it "is a confidence-building measure" the same as on the border.
"There was some movement on this issue at the last round of settlement talks - attended by the EU and the US. I warmly welcome this movement, and support the idea of monitoring," Solana said.
He repeated the EU calls for the implementation of the so-called Istanbul commitments on the withdrawal of Russian troops and ammunition stocks from the region.
"I am pleased that the EU is now an observer at the settlement talks. The EU wants to work constructively towards a viable settlement, and looks forward to working in a constructive manner to this end," Solana said.
Meanwhile, Moldovan Prime Minister Vasile Tarlev has urged Romania to support Moldova on the withdrawal of Russian troops from Transdniestria.
The Moldovan government press service told Interfax that at a meeting in Slovakia with Romanian Deputy Prime Minister Gheorghe Pogea he invited the Romanian government to support the declaration on the need for Russia to observe the Istanbul commitments on troops withdrawal.
OSCE foreign ministers are expected to discuss the declaration at their meeting in Ljubljana in December.