Ukraine condemns Russia's attempts to drag Transnistria into the war

ALENA MAZURENKO — TUESDAY, 26 APRIL 2022, 17:52

Ukraine supports Moldova's territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders and condemns attempts to involve Transnistria in Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine.

Source: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Oleg Nikolenko on Twitter, Foreign Ministry press service

Nikolenko's quote: "Ukraine strongly supports Moldova's territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders. We condemn attempts to involve Moldovan Transnistria in Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine. We call for an immediate de-escalation of tensions."

Details: The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is concerned about attempts to aggravate the security situation in the Transnistrian region of Moldova.

The Ministry said that the wave of reports on 21-26 April about the mining of educational institutions, the attack on the building of the "Ministry of State Security", the destruction of two radio towers in Grigoriopol district and explosions at the airport in Tiraspol coincided with statements by the Russian military command to seize the whole south of Ukraine and establish a land corridor with the Transnistrian region of Moldova.

Quote: "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine continues to closely monitor the further development of the situation. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are reliably defending our state and are ready to destroy any further insidious plans of the aggressor on Ukrainian territory, in particular in the Pivdennyi Buh front."

Background: 

• On 25 April, a series of explosions were heard in the capital of the unrecognised Transnistrian Moldavian Republic (TMR).
• Ukrainian intelligence reports that a few days ago, unrecognised Transnistria began preparing for "explosions" organised by the FSB [Russian Federal Security Service] as a justification for the war with Ukraine or with the purpose of involving the Transnistrian region in hostilities in the war against Ukraine.
• Later the so-called Ministry of Internal Affairs of Transnistria reported that on the morning of 26 April in the village of Maiak Grigoriopol district two explosions had been heard: the first at 6:40, the second at 7:05.
• In unrecognised Transnistria,  reports came of a third attack on the territory of the so-called "republic".