The European Parliament adopted a resolution on Transnistria. The resolution was tabled by the EPP, ECR, S&D, ALDE, and Greens/EFA groups. It condemned the politicisation of the education policy area, in the Transnistrian region, and called for the cessation of any form of pressure directed towards Romanian teaching institutions in the Transnistrian region. It condemned the increased administrative pressure being exercised by the self-proclaimed authorities in Transnistria against the eight Romanian-language schools, with actions ranging from higher rents and harassment of teachers, to declarations indicating that those schools that refuse to recognise the authority of the separatist regime will be closed. Parliament urged the self-proclaimed authorities in Transnistria to respect the fundamental right to mother-tongue education and to accord the highest priority to the security of children and staff.
Members emphasised the EU’s firm commitment to the territorial integrity of Moldova and called for a greater involvement of the EU in solving this conflict in its immediate neighbourhood, including the enhancement of the EU’s status to that of a negotiating partner, and stated that dialogue was the only tool for resolving such sensitive and important matters and ensuring long-term solutions. They asked the High Representative to address the issue of the right to education during the next round of 5+2 negotiations scheduled for February 2014, to devote more attention to the 5+2 format negotiations, and to engage at all levels with all the parties involved in order to achieve a faster comprehensive and peaceful solution to the Transnistrian conflict. At the same time, Parliament condemned the lack of constructive participation by the self-proclaimed authorities in Transnistria in the 5+2 format negotiations, resulting in minimal progress since the resumption of talks.
It stressed the need for the following:
· the adoption of a speedy procedure leading to the adoption of the visa liberalisation with Moldova;
· accelerating the technical procedures leading to the signing and provisional application of the Association Agreement, including the Deep and Comprehensive Free trade Area Agreement;
· using instruments such as the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights to support the Transnistrian population directly, developing programmes to support civil society, access to information, education and free media, which have been denied by the self-proclaimed authorities in Transnistria.
Furthermore, Parliament called on the Russian Federation to implement the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights that ruled that Russia had violated the right to education in the cases of Moldovan schools using Romanian in the region of Transnistria. It noted that the presence of Russian troops lead to a climate that endangered respect for human rights, and called on the Russian Federation to immediately stop its support for the self-proclaimed authorities in Transnistria and fulfil the commitments made in 1996 in the Council of Europe and reflected in OSCE decisions (Istanbul, 1999 and Oporto, 2002) concerning the withdrawal of Russian troops and arms from the territory of Moldova and the replacement of these troops with a civilian peacekeeping mission.
Lastly, Members called on the self-proclaimed authorities in Transnistria to cooperate with the OSCE mission to Moldova and allow it to access its territory.