Transnistria, terrorism and negotiations: Moscow defends itself on all fronts | War in Ukraine

Russia condemns terrorist acts in Transnistria. The explosions that occurred there this week are the result of an attempt to involve Transnistria in the events in Ukraineassures the spokesperson of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova.

She asked the passage to Transnistria and Moldova tocarry out a constructive search for solutions.

She thus refutes the accusations of Ukraine, which believes that Moscow is seeking to destabilize Transnistria and is preparing its troops in the region for an offensive. No fewer than 1,500 Russian soldiers have been stationed there since 1992, when Transnistria declared itself independent from Moldova. However, no state, including Russia, recognizes the region’s independence.

A series of incidents rocked Transnistria this week. On Monday, an official building was the target of a rocket launcher attack. On Tuesday, a radio tower was damaged by two explosions. Then on Wednesday, a village bordering Ukraine where a Russian ammunition depot is housed was overflown by drones and then targeted by gunfire from the other side of the border.

These incidents did not cause casualties, but reinforce the fear of an overflow in Moldova of the conflict which is ravaging neighboring Ukraine.

Ukraine has also accused Russia of having bombed a bridge that crosses the Dniester, the river separating it from Moldova.

Moscow refuses to be considered a state godfather of terrorism

Maria Zakharova took the opportunity to raise the possibility of Russia being added to the US list of state sponsors of terrorism.

This idea was first floated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during a phone meeting with his American counterpart, Joe Biden, about two weeks ago. But she appears to be gaining popularity within the Biden administration in the past few days, according to the BBC.

The idea is idiotsaid the Russian spokeswoman, who also warned the United States that there would be consequences to such a measure.

” We won’t leave any metrics unanswered, of course, and they should understand that. »

The more the United States pushes this idea into the minds of the international community, the more the latter will remember the crimes perpetrated by the Americans.she clarified.

Iran, North Korea and Syria are part of this blacklist.

Moreover, Russia is sorry to have still not received a response from Ukraine regarding its latest proposal for a peace agreement between the two countries, recalled Maria Zakharova.

The two sides met for talks a month ago in Istanbul, Turkey, with no significant breakthrough since.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he wants to continue negotiations, even if he accuses Russia of war crimes and genocide and even if it continues to bomb Ukraine.

Westerners will not deter Russia from attacking

Along with this defensive rhetoric, the Kremlin spokeswoman warned Western countries to stop encouraging Ukraine to attack Russia.

” A new provocation for Ukraine to strike at Russian facilities will be met with a harsh Russian response. »

And Russia will not be deterred from launching retaliatory strikes in Ukraine because Western officials are visiting the country, she added. They will not necessarily be a problem for Russia’s response measures.

With information from Reuters, Agence France-Presse, BBC and CNN