Opening Russian-Moldovan negotiations in an extended format, President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia is greatly interested in Moldova being an integral and independent state, which is developing dynamically and serves as a factor of stability in the region.
Both presidents gave high assessment of the results of their tete-a-tete negotiations held the previous evening and this morning, as well as the work of both delegations to find solution to a number of bilateral issues.
In response to the Moldovan side’s request to speed up the process of the Transdnestr settlement, the Russian side made a decision to establish a government commission to address the issue. At a news conference following the talks, Mr Putin said that Yevgeny Primakov would head this commission.
In addition, as Mr Putin said, Russia and Moldova agreed to complete the drafting of a new basic treaty between the two countries in the near future.
Speaking about the Transdnestr settlement, Mr Putin stressed, in particular, that Russia is interested in stability in the region, but this cannot be achieved without taking into account the interests of all the population groups living in the region, including Transdnestr residents.