TIRASPOL. Jan 23 (Interfax) - Tiraspol does not share Ukrainian Foreign Minister and OSCE Chairman-in-Office Leonid Kozhara's approach toward the way the conflict over the self-proclaimed republic of Transdniestria should be settled, Transdniestrian Foreign Minister Nina Stanschi said in an interview with Interfax.
The definition of Transdniestria's future status is not a key issue in the negotiations in the 5+2 format, and Tiraspol attaches priority to resolving socioeconomic problems, she said.
Kozhara met with Transdniestrian President Eugen Sevciuc, Prime Minister Petr Stepanov, parliamentary speaker Mihail Burla and Stanschi, who is also a deputy prime minister for international cooperation, during his visit to Tiraspol on January 22.
In commenting on outcomes of Kozhara's visit, Stanschi said "the key issue was a search for ways to promote the dialogue in the 5+2 format [involving Transdniestria and Moldova as the parties to the conflict, Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE as mediators, and the EU and the U.S. as observers], to bolster its positive dynamics, and improve its efficiency in the context of achieving agreements that were not achieved in 2012, which concerns "socioeconomic issues as belonging to the first basket," she said.
Stanschi acknowledged that Transdniestria's status was addressed at the meeting. "But Transdniestria did not confirm its willingness to discuss status. As before, the president of Transdniestria said there were no preconditions for such dialogue. Priority should be given to socioeconomic issues. It is impossible to move ahead without resolving them," she said.