The visit of the Russian military senior officials to the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic started with attending the peacekeeping checkpoint. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu checked the line of duty performed by Russian peacekeepers and debriefed the Russian Senior Military Chief of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces Oleg Leukhin and the Head of the Russian Army Task Force in Pridnestrovie Dmitry Zelenkov.
The President of Pridnestrovie Vadim Krasnoselsky met Russian guests in the Alexander Nevsky Park located in Bendery. The participants to the meeting were greeted by the honour guard of the Pridnestrovian Defence Ministry, students of the Tiraspol Suvorov Military School, the Cadet Corps, as well as the Young Army cadets. Vadim Krasnoselsky and Sergei Shoigu laid flowers at the Alexander Nevsky bust near the walls of the Bendery Fortress and visited the exhibition hall exposing the history of the Russian army on the banks of the Dniester. The exhibition hall hosted also the ceremony of awarding For Strengthening Military Cooperation medal to the Pridnestrovian and Russian officers and soldiers (award of the Russian Defence Ministry).
Opening the official meeting, President Krasnoselsky expressed gratitude to the Russian Federation and personally to the Minister of Defence for the contribution to peacekeeping on the banks of the Dniester. Speaking about the peacekeeping mission, he emphasized that the Russian soldiers have been protecting security in the territory of Pridnestrovie for more than two centuries, but not for two and a half decades, as is commonly believed. Today's peacekeepers are the successors of the glorious traditions of Russian peacekeeping laid back in 1792 – in the Suvorov era, when Tiraspol was founded, Vadim Krasnoselsky emphasized.
The importance of Russian peacekeeping and the attitude of Pridnestrovians towards this mission is evidenced by the liability in the criminal legislation of the republic for denying its positive role, the President of the PMR noted. He also spoke about the inadmissibility of changing the format of the Russian peacekeeping mission on the banks of the Dniester. For his part, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu stressed the high level of operation efficiency, emphasizing that this format, which has become a successful example of establishing and maintaining peace, has succeeded.
The interlocutors discussed practical issues related to ensuring the operation of the Russian Army Task Force in Pridnestrovie, as well as aspects related to the disposing of ammunition with an expiring shelf life. The parties mentioned the activities of military educational institutions. It was said, for example, that the students of Tiraspol Suvorov Military School should be actively involved in events held in the Russian Federation within the Suvorov Youth Movement.
The participants to the meeting paid also attention to commemorating the 75th anniversary of liberation of Pridnestrovie from Nazi invaders on August 23, 2019. Sergei Shoigu handed over to Vadim Krasnoselsky documents and materials about the military route of Sergeant Anton Chichik during the Great Patriotic War, a native of Karagash village, Pridnestrovie. Among numerous awards, the First and Second Class Orders of Glory. Sergei Shoigu expressed hope that the military identification card of Sergeant Anton Chichik would be handed over to his relatives.
The meeting between the Pridnestrovian President and the Defence Minister of the Russian Federation continued without the media coverage. The Russian delegation included also Deputy Minister of Defence Alexander Fomin, Head of General Staff Main Operational Directorate Sergey Rudskoy, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia to Moldova Oleg Vasnetsov, Head of MOD Main Personnel Inspectorate Viktor Goremykin, and Head of MOD Main Directorate for International Military Cooperation Alexander Kshimovsky. The Head of Pridnestrovie Vadim Krasnoselsky was accompanied during the meeting by Head of the President Office Sergey Belous, Prime Minister Alexander Martynov, Defence Minister of Pridnestrovie Oleg Obruchkov, and Foreign Minister of Pridnestrovie Vitaly Ignatiev.
