The Moldovan permanent representative at the United Nations (UN), Victor Moraru, has recently asked the organisation to include on its agenda the topic of the withdrawal of the Russian troops from the breakaway territory of Transnistria, Moldpress reported on August 23.

The relationships between the Moldovan government and Russia has been deteriorating recently. At the beginning of August, Moldova declared Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin persona no grata, following the latter’s “offensive statements” about the Moldovan authorities. On the other hand, Moldovan President Igor Dodon is pro-Russian and has been trying to strengthen the country’s relations with Moscow ever since he took office last year.

On July 22, Moldova’s parliament endorsed a statement asking Russian troops to leave the national territory. The parliament invited the government and president to take steps towards having a UN resolution asking for the Russian troops to leave Moldovan territory.

Moraru has now sent a letter to the UN to ask to include the topic of the removal of the Russian troops on its agenda.

“The government of Moldova, according to Article 11 of the UN status, is calling for the inclusion of the issue of definite removal of international military troops from the territory of Transnistria on the agenda of the 72^nd session of the General Assembly,” Moldpress quoted the letter as saying.

The information was confirmed by parliamentary speaker Andrian Candu, claiming that “for 25 years, under the pretext of a peackeeping mission,” Russia “illegally maintains troops, ammunition and arms” on Moldova’s territory.

“At the end of this session, the parliament adopted a declaration demanding that they should be withdrawn and the Moldova’s neutrality and statehood should be respected. It was not a simple document. We will continue to do everything to reintegrate the territory,” Candu wrote on Facebook.

Moldova’s Constitutional Court ruled on May 2 that the Moldovan authorities are entitled to use any means in order to prevent any situation (including the presence of foreign troops on its territory) affecting the country’s neutrality.

GOTR (Operative Group of Russian Troops) has been maintained by Russia in the Moldovan separatist republic of Transnistria with the declared mission of securing the 20,000 tonnes of ammunition left from the USSR. 

Moldova and Ukraine took control this year of their border and removed Transnistria's involvement in the process, which generated economic hardship to the separatist region. This came after Moldova cut electricity purchases from Transnistria, generating even deeper losses in the separatist region.