AGREEMENT
The Republic of Moldova and Transdniestria,
hereinafter referred to as the Parties,
Striving rapidly and comprehensively to overcome by exclusively peaceful and
political means the consequences of the conflict which occurred in the Transdniestrian region of the Republic of Moldova;
Recognizing the responsibility for integrating the country, for securing civil
peace, trust, mutual understanding, and concord in society;
have agreed to the following:
Chapter 1. Fundamentals of the Constitutional System of the Republic of Moldova
Article 1
The Republic of Moldova is a democratic, federal State, governed by the rule of
law, with a republican form of government, the policy of which is oriented
toward creating conditions ensuring a decent life and free development for the
individual.
Article 2
The human being, his rights and freedoms represent
supreme values. The recognition, observance, and protection of human rights and
rights and freedoms of the citizens are the obligation of the State.
Every citizen is guaranteed judicial protection of his/her rights and freedoms.
The decisions and actions (or lack of action) of the central authorities, local
administration, public associations, and civil servants may be challenged in
court.
Each citizen is entitled, in accordance with the international treaties entered
into by the
Article 3
National sovereignty resides with the people of the
The people shall exercise their power directly and through central and local
authorities.
The sovereignty of the
The Constitution and the laws of the
The
Article 4
State-territorial entities shall be established within the
The state order of the
In their interrelations with the central authorities of the
Article 5
The citizenship of the
Each citizen of the
Article 6
The unity of economic space, free movement of
commodities, services, and financial means, and the freedom of economic
activity are guaranteed in the
Private, State, municipal, and other types of property shall be equally
recognized and protected in the
Article 7
The legislative, executive, and judicial branches in the
The legislative, executive, and judicial bodies are independent.
Article 8
State power in the
State power in the state-territorial entities of the
Delimitation of competencies and powers between the bodies of State power of
the
Article 9
Local self-government shall be recognized and guaranteed in the
Article 10
Political diversity and a multi-party system shall be recognized in the
Chapter 2. State Order
Article 11
The territorial organization of the
Article 12
The status of the state-territorial entities shall be
determined by the present Agreement, the Constitution and the laws of the
Their status may be modified by mutual consent of the
Article 13
The borders of the state-territorial entities of the
Article 14
The national language on the entire territory of the
The state-territorial entities have the right to establish their own official
languages. These shall be used in the bodies of State authority, local
administration, and institutions, along with the State language of the
The
Article 15
The Republic of Moldova shall have the following competencies:
a. Adoption and amendment of the Constitution and the laws of the Republic of
Moldova and control over their implementation;
b. State order and the territory of the Republic of Moldova;
c. Regulation and protection of the rights and freedoms of the individual and
citizen; citizenship in the Republic of Moldova, regulation and protection of
the rights of national minorities;
d. Establishing the legislative, executive, and judicial systems, the
procedures of their organization and functioning; forming bodies of State
authority;
e. State property and its management;
f. Establishing the fundamentals of policy and programs in the areas of State,
economic, ecological, social, cultural, and national development of the
Republic of Moldova;
g. Establishing the legal bases for a unified market; financial, currency,
credit, customs control regulations, money issuance, foundations of a price
policy; economic agencies, including the National Bank;
h. Republican budget, taxes and duties;
i. Power supply systems, transport, railroads,
information, and communications;
j. Foreign policy and international relations of the Republic of Moldova,
international treaties of the Republic of Moldova, matters of war and peace;
k. Foreign economic relations of the Republic of Moldova;
l. Defense and security; defense industry; determination of procedures for
selling and buying arms, ammunition, military equipment, and other military
property; production of poisonous substances, drugs, and regulations for their
use;
m. Determining the status of and protecting State borders and the airspace of
the Republic of Moldova; the regime of frontier zones;
n. Judicial system, law enforcement, criminal legislation, criminal procedural
legislation, and legislation on enforcing sentences; amnesty and pardon; civil
legislation, civil procedural legislation, and arbitration procedural
legislation; legal regulation of intellectual property;
o. Legal collisions;
p. Meteorological service, standards, models, metric system, time measurement,
geodesy and cartography, geographical names, official statistical registration
and accounting;
q. State awards and honorary titles of the Republic of Moldova.
Article 16
The joint competencies of the Republic of Moldova and state-territorial
entities include:
a. Ensuring that the constitutions and laws of the state-territorial entities
correspond to the present Agreement, the Constitution and the laws of the
Republic of Moldova;
b. Protecting the rights and freedoms of the individual and citizen; protecting
the rights of national minorities; ensuring legality and the rule of law;
c. Issues of property, use and management of land, earth, water, and other
natural resources;
d. Delimitation of State property;
e. Nature management; environmental protection and ecological safety;
protection of natural territories; historical and cultural monuments;
f. General issues of instruction, education, science, culture, physical
training and sports;
g. Coordinating health care issues; protection of family, motherhood,
fatherhood, and childhood; social security, including welfare;
h. Implementing measures for managing catastrophes, natural disasters,
epidemics, and eradicating their consequences;
i. Establishing common principles of taxation;
j. Administrative, administrative procedural, labor, family, residence, land,
water, forest legislation, legislation on earth resources, legislation on
environmental protection;
k. Staff of the judicial and law enforcement bodies, the Bar, Notary’s Office;
l. Establishing common principles for the organization of the system of State
authority and local self-government.
The provisions of this article shall apply to all the state-territorial
entities equally.
The implementation of joint competencies and the exclusive competencies of the
Article 17
Beyond the limits of competencies of the
Article 18
The establishment of internal customs borders, taxes,
duties, or any other impediments to the free movement of commodities, services,
and financial recourses is forbidden on the territory of the
Limitations to the movement of commodities and services may be introduced in
accordance with the legislation of the
Article 19
The monetary unit of the
Article 20
Constitutional laws shall be adopted concerning the competencies of the
Laws of the
Beyond the competencies of the
The laws and other normative legal acts of the state-territorial entities of
the
Article 21
The state-territorial entities shall determine the system of organs of State
authority independently in accordance with the fundamentals of the
constitutional system of the Republic of Moldova and the common principles of
organization of the legislative and executive branches of State authority.
Organs of executive authority of the
Article 22
With a view to implementing their competencies, the organs of executive
authority of the
By common agreement with the organs of executive authority of the
state-territorial entities, the organs of executive authority of the
By common agreement with the organs of executive authority of the
The President of the
Chapter 3. The President of the
Article 23
The President of the
In accordance with the Constitution and the laws of the
Article 24
The President of the
The President of the
The President of the Republic of Moldova is entitled to suspend the effect of
acts of organs of executive authority of the Republic of Moldova and of the
state-territorial entities of the Republic of Moldova, in case they violate the
Constitution and the laws of the Republic of Moldova, international commitments
of the Republic of Moldova, or the rights and freedoms of individuals and
citizens, until the issue is settled by an appropriate court of law.
The President of the
Article 25
The President of the
A decision by the Parliament to remove the President from office requires a two
thirds vote by the members of the Parliament.
Chapter 4. The Parliament of the
Article 26
The Parliament of the
The Chamber of Representatives consists of 30 members and represents the
chamber of territorial representation. The state-territorial entities are
represented in the Chamber by an equal number of votes.
The election of the Parliament, the organization of its activity, and its
competencies are established by the Constitution and the laws of the
Article 27
The right to legislative initiative belongs to the
President of the
Draft laws are submitted in the Chamber of Legislators.
Article 28
The laws of the
The laws passed by the Chamber of Legislators shall be submitted to the Chamber
of Representatives within 14 days.
A law of the
In case the President of the
Article 29
Constitutional laws are passed on matters envisaged by the present Agreement
and the Constitution of the
Chapter 5. The Government of the
Article 30
Executive authority of the
Chapter 6. The Judicial Authority of the
Article 31
Justice in the
The court system of the
Chapter 7. Local Self-Government in the
Article 32
The local administration guarantees independent
resolution of problems of local interest by the people.
Local administration is carried out by the citizens through referenda,
elections, other forms of direct expression of will, as well as through
electoral and other organs of local administration.
Chapter 8. Guarantees and Transitional Provisions
Article 33
With a view to assuring guarantees for implementation and establishment of a
mechanism to fulfill the provisions of this Agreement and other documents on
issues of the Transdniestrian settlement,
The Republic of Moldova and Transdniestria mutually
guarantee full and unconditional implementation of agreements governing their
interrelations.
Article 34
The Parties undertake not to resort to force, or to threats of the use of
force, in their mutual relations.
The Parties confirm that any and all disagreements shall be settled by
exclusively peaceful means, through negotiations and consultations between the
Article 35
The Russian Federation,
Article 36
The Parties agreed on applying the guarantees for fulfilling the provisions of
the Agreement in the following spheres:
I. Political Guarantees
Mutual respect toward the positions of the Parties shall be ensured, as well as
the non-acceptance of unilateral measures directed against other Party which
could undermine its authority.
The Parties shall develop a coordinated intra-State procedure for entering into
force of international documents which affect the interests of Transdniestria.
II. Economic Guarantees
During the transition period, by mutual efforts of the Republic of Moldova and Transdniestria:
- issues regarding the restoration and raising of the economy shall be solved,
as well as development of economic relations in such spheres as the fuel-energy
complex, transport, communications, etc.; investments projects and creation of
joint ventures shall be stimulated;
- the sums and sources of the contributions to the joint state budget shall be determined
by mutual agreement;
- the issue of a common currency shall be dealt with step-by-step, until the
introduction of which the current currency regulations are maintained;
- the content of cooperation between banks shall be determined through mutual
agreement;
- laws on the state property shall be harmonized, as well as the legislation on
privatization and property rights registration;
- the tax systems shall be harmonized, by establishing common principles of
taxation and by developing a unified legislation in this sphere;
- the work for developing a common legal basis shall be organized.
III. Military Guarantees
In order to support secure peace and stability, the Parties agree to the
presence during the transition period of peacekeeping forces under the
supervision of the OSCE.
The provision on the peacekeeping forces in Transdniestria
is governed by a separate document, which is signed simultaneously with the
present Agreement.
In order to strengthen confidence, to complete the unification of the Army, and
implement military guarantees, the
a. To inform each other about planned military activities;
b. To establish the institution of military observers of the Parties at the
organized military activities.
IV. Social, Cultural, and Other Guarantees
In the Republic of Moldova there are common coordinated standards in the fields
of education, health care, culture, welfare, retirement benefits, levels of
social guarantees in labor, social security.
On the entire territory the population enjoys equal and unhindered access to
medical care, to general and specialized education; equal conditions shall be
created for the implementation of educational and cultural needs and necessities
of citizens.
All the authorities in Transdniestria shall ensure
the observance of internationally recognized human rights and fundamental
freedoms, provisions on the rights and freedoms contained in the European
Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and its
Protocols. The stipulations on these rights and freedoms have superior force
over other laws.
Everyone in Transdniestria may appeal to
international institutions to defend his/her rights.
All representatives of international organizations shall have access to Transdniestria in order to provide international
assistance. All inhabitants of Transdniestria shall
also have unhindered and direct access to the staff members of such
organizations.
The Parties acknowledge that all the citizens have the right to return to their
homes in Transdniestria and
Through search mechanisms of the Committee on Missing Persons, the Parties
shall cooperate and submit information to the families of all the persons,
whose fate is unknown.
The Parties appeal to the international community with the request to provide
humanitarian aid primarily for refugees and displaced persons returning to
their abandoned homes.
Article 37
Amendments shall be introduced to the Constitution of the
The constitution and legislation of the subjects of the
Article 38
The institutions currently functioning in Transdniestria shall be retained until their replacement by
bodies established in accordance with the Constitution of the
All the laws, decisions, and other acts valid in Transdniestria
at the moment of this Agreement entering into force, remain in effect if and
until they are replaced by laws and decisions adopted by a competent body.
Article 39
To settle disputes and conflict situations during the
transition period, the
In the year _____ elections in the two-chamber Parliament of the
Article 40
From the moment of signature of this Agreement the Parties shall ensure:
- development of mechanisms for establishing a unified budget, banking/credit
systems, macroeconomic policy;
- use by Transdniestria of its own monetary unit
along with the Moldovan Lei, for cashless payments;
- citizen’s rights and freedoms;
- implementation of measures to reduce the armed forces of the Parties to their
minimal possible level;
- implementation of measures to combat crime;
- the resolution of other issues.
Article 41
Based on agreements to be reached in the transition period, as well as on
documents determining the status of Transdniestria,
the Parties agreed with the necessity of preparing and submitting the
appropriate legislative initiatives on adding to and amending legislation.
To implement the measures for step-by-step settlement set out in this
Agreement, the Parties shall continue to hold regular meetings, shall ensure
the uninterrupted work of the commissions on socio-economic development and on
coordination and support of the negotiating process.
The Parties may also, if necessary, establish by mutual consent joint or conforming
commissions, expert groups, other working bodies for the drafting and
implementation of various agreements.
Each Party has the right to pass legal acts, facilitating the implementation of
competencies and obligations contained in the present Agreement, on condition
that such acts shall not modify, limit, or undermine the obligations set forth
in this Agreement.
Article 42
The present Agreement has supreme judicial force,
direct effect and it applies on the entire territory of the
The universally recognized principles and norms of international law are a
constituent part of the legal system of the
This Agreement enters into force from the day of its signature.
For the
For Transdniestria
________________________ _______________________
From the guarantor states:
For the Russian Federation
For
______________________ ________________________
For the OSCE
__________________________
______ 2002