Moldovan President Igor Dodon said on Friday that he was ready to call on people to take to the streets to "maintain peace and tranquility" in the country and prevent the escalation of the Transnistria crisis, after he lost the presidential race to his pro-European opponent, Maia Sandu
CHISINAU (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 27th November, 2020) Moldovan President Igor Dodon said on Friday that he was ready to call on people to take to the streets to "maintain peace and tranquility" in the country and prevent the escalation of the Transnistria crisis, after he lost the presidential race to his pro-European opponent, Maia Sandu.
Earlier in November, Sandu told Ukrainian media outlet Evropeyskaya Pravda that, in her opinion, the breakaway republic of Transnistria should reunite with Moldova, which implied the withdrawal of the Russian peacekeeping force from the unrecognized state.
"There were some incomprehensible statements by the the new president towards Russia and Transnistria. We will not allow a repeat of the 1990s, when the country's leaders in Chisinau launched the slogans 'suitcase-station-Russia'... We will do our best to maintain peace and tranquility in the country by every legal means. If necessary, I will call on people to take to the streets to keep the peace," Dodon said in a video message broadcast on his Facebook page.
He stressed that Moldova is a parliamentary republic, so the head of state will not be able to make any decisions without parliament and government. The country's legislature is currently dominated by the Party of Socialists, of which Dodon is an ex-leader.
On November 15, the second round of the presidential election was held in Moldova, in which Sandu won with 57.75 percent of the vote. The inauguration ceremony is planned for late December.
Transnistria, which is mostly populated by ethnic Russians and Ukrainians, seceded from Moldova in 1990, fearing the latter's possible reunion with Romania. The split led to an armed conflict that ended in a 1992 ceasefire. De facto, Transnistria has become a territory out of Chisinau's control. The Russian peacekeeping force has been present in Transnistria for 28 years. Currently, 402 Russian peacekeepers are deployed in the self-proclaimed country.
