CHISINAU. Dec 27 (Interfax) - Moldovan authorities view Transdniestria's intention to introduce Russian law in the region as "provocative," Moldovan parliamentary Chairman Igor Corman told Interfax on Thursday.
"The Tiraspol authorities' intention to introduce Russian law in Transdniestria is provocative in nature. We can't understand this situation, and we have already asked Russia to clarify its position. We expect an official reaction from Russia. As far as I know, Russia says it does not support these actions, and they have not been coordinated with Moscow," Corman said.
"In line with international law, Transdniestria is part of Moldova, and only [Moldovan] laws can be applied on its territory," he said.
Moldovan Deputy Prime Minister for Reintegration Eugen Carpov also said that "the [Transdniestrian] Supreme Council's decision to approve Tiraspol leader Eugen Sevciuc's initiative yesterday does not have any legal implications."
Carpov said following a Thursday government meeting that the Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Reintegration had sent a verbal note to the Russian Foreign Ministry to find out Russia's position and learn how it assesses the actions and initiatives put forward on the left bank of the Dniester River. Moldovan Ambassador to Russia Andrei Galbur had a meeting at the Russian Foreign Ministry on Thursday at his own initiative, at which he aired Chisinau's position on the matter, Carpov said.
"This decision by the Tiraspol administration goes against the Transdniestrian settlement process. The decision has been made unilaterally, and it is also provocative toward the international community, which recognized the existing 5+2 format as a forum for negotiations on settling the conflict at a recent OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in Kyiv," Carpov said.
Valeriu Strelet, the leader of the parliamentary faction of the Moldovan Liberal-Democratic Party, told journalists that, "in any case, the time will come when the Transdniestrian region's status will be determined by a law adopted by the Chisinau authorities, and it will clearly and unambiguously establish both the autonomous region's legal grounds and boundaries."