Mr. Chairperson,

The Ukrainian Delegation warmly welcomes the Head of the OSCE Mission to Moldova Ambassador Michael Scanlan and thanks him for his comprehensive and informative report.  

At the outset let me emphasise that Ukraine highly values its friendly relations and close cooperation with the Republic of Moldova, based on the principles of good-neighborliness and mutual respect. We note and welcome the resolve of the Government of Moldova to build a strong, politically stable and economically prosperous state, realizing its European aspirations.

We reiterate our full support for the OSCE Mission to Moldova and its efforts to effectively implement its mandate in contributing to a settlement of the Transdniestrian conflict that respects the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova. In this context Ukraine welcomes the signs of revitalization of negotiations and contacts at different levels that were observed over last three months.

The Delegation of Ukraine welcomes the conduct of special consultations of “5+2” participants in Vienna in April which allowed to address several challenging issues and to put the “5+2” process back on track. During the meeting Ukraine`s representative  made a number of practical suggestions which could assist the sides in reaching balanced and viable decisions on issues relating to economy and cross-border cooperation. We expect that these discussions pave the way to regular “5+2” meetings and encourage all parties to make sure that a calendar for the “5+2” negotiations envisaged by the Basel Ministerial Council Statement be observed. We hope that the next round of “5+2” negotiations at an early jointly agreed date will be marked by tangible progress across all three baskets of the agreed agenda for the negotiation process.

We value the Mission’s work in supporting Moldova’s multi-faceted reform program and encourage to continue to duly take into account the priorities of the host country. We also value the Mission`s reporting on the political and security situation on the ground. We view it as indispensable for accomplishment of the mandate of the Mission that its members have full access to the entire territory of the Republic of Moldova, including the Transdniestrian region as well as the Russian arms depot at Colbasna.

Ukraine and Moldova are interested in improving conditions for trade and economic co-operation. Unfortunately, the general trend of last year in the region was the decrease of trade turnover. Ukraine’s export to Moldova fell by 49,3 %, to its Transdniestrian region – by 49%. Overall regional trade indicators were also affected by unilateral decisions adopted in Russia, in particular the introduction of duties on certain export goods from Moldova from 1 September 2014. Against this background, in the first quarter of this year the export from the Transdniestrian region of Moldova to Russia fell by nearly 52% compared to the first quarter of last year. It would be important that Russia refrains from taking unilateral decisions which have a negative impact on trade and reviews already adopted ones.

In conclusion, I would like to reiterate that Ukraine looks forward to continuing its active engagement in the “5+2” format with the aim of facilitating a comprehensive, just and viable resolution of the Transdniestrian conflict on the basis of sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova with a special status for Transdniestria.

The Delegation of Ukraine again thanks Ambassador Scanlan for his report and wishes him and his able team every success in their activities.

Thank you, Mr. Chairperson.