No weapons smuggling from Transdniestria, EU border monitors say

Transdniestrian customs inspectors, shown here, help enforce the republic's borders in collaboration with neighboring states

ODESSA (Tiraspol Times) - If the lack of evidence from the European Union's own border monitors is any indicator, Transdniestria (officially: Pridnestrovie) does not smuggle any weapons or participate in any kind of arms trade whatsoever.

For nearly two years, the European Union has had a multi-million dollar border monitoring program in place on Pridnestrovie's border with Ukraine. The program, which is known as EUBAM, was put in place after persistent allegations that Pridnestrovie was an arms-producing "black hole" and supplier to the illegal weapons trade worldwide. But EUBAM had hardly begun before Western diplomats told the press that reports of smuggling from Pridnestrovie were wildly exaggerated.

EU and OSCE officials have never seen any evidence of Pridnestrovie's involvement in smuggling and said publicly that there is "not a shred of evidence" to back up the allegations.

Nevertheless, Pro-Moldovan journalists and commentators continue to present a distorted picture of Pridnestrovie. One press report claimed that the country is “a black hole” and "a smuggling company masquerading as a country". The fact that both of these allegations are untrue doesn’t deter those who are against Pridnestrovie's right to be independent.

The accusations that Pridnestrovie is somehow involved an authoritarian "black hole" of crime and sleaze is a manufactured myth, designed as propaganda to win over public opinion for Moldova's territorial claim to Pridnestrovie.

Western diplomats say reports of smuggling from PMR exaggerated

Western diplomats in Moldova and Ukraine say reports of massive arms and drug smuggling emanating from Pridnestrovie appear to be wildly exaggerated. Officials from the European Union and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), say they have no evidence that Tiraspol has ever trafficked arms or nuclear material. This was the news in a report by U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty on 11 October 2005, attributing the alarm to destabilizing efforts by the Moldovan government in an effort to increase pressure on Pridnestrovie.

None of the many EU, OSCE, and Ukrainian officials interviewed by RFE/RL in Moldova and Ukraine said they have seen evidence that Tiraspol is involved in trafficking arms or nuclear material for dirty bombs.
Yet that very same charge was made by Moldovan Foreign Minister Andrei Stratan, one of the officials who is in charge of seeking better relations with Transnistria, as the unrecognized country is known in Moldova's language. Stratan did not elaborate when pressed by RFE/RL; nor did he ever produce any kind of evidence at any point in time.

OSCE officials interviewed by RFE/RL say such claims are exaggerated. An ambassador to Chisinau from a large EU member state told RFE/RL there is "not a shred of evidence" to back up the allegations. An EU official based in Brussels said an EU delegation that toured the Moldovan-Ukrainian border area for 10 days in August did not manage to unearth a single source claiming to have information about weapons smuggling.

On the second day of her visit to Moldova, the EU's external relations commissioner, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, changed her speech at the last minute to remove a paragraph emphasizing that Pridnestrovie smuggles weapons. The commissioner said she has "never" seen any evidence for these charges.

Pridnestrovie makes a living from legitimate exports such as textile, the world famous Kvint brandy, electrical supplies, clothes, shoes, metal and construction materials. In Soviet times, it was developed as an industrial region and its concentration of working factories of light and heavy industry is much higher than in Moldova.

EU oversees the borders

The authorities in Pridnestrovie vehemently deny that they engage in smuggling. President Smirnov points out the obvious: That Pridnestrovie has a landlocked location. If such illegal activity takes place it could only do so with the cooperation of its neighbors, neither of which have been targeted for attack in the same way.

Rouslan Slobodeniuc, a former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs from Pridnestrovie, pointed out that “both Ukraine and PMR are under such close scrutiny by the EU that it makes contraband smuggling impossible. European observers have a permanent mission on our borders”.

In addition, an electronic system is in place to control Pridnestrovie’s borders, under the scrutiny of “different European commissions”, which subject everything crossing the PMR and Ukrainian border to surveillance via two electronic codes for both imported and exported goods. “Straightforward smuggling is impossible” said Slobodeniuc adding that “accusations that it takes place with official knowledge or approval should not be taken seriously."

See also:
» Experts rule out weapons smuggling from Transnistria
» EU confirms absence of weapons smuggling
» Ukraine's State Border Service says Transnistria is not a "black hole"

Opinion and commentary:
» Kafka and the Arms Smugglers