OREANDA-NEWS. November 02, 2011. The Institute for CIS Countries led by staunch advocate of the unrecognized Transnistrian Moldovan republic (PMR), MP of the Russian State Duma [parliament] Konstantin Zatulin, has subjected to criticism a RosPotrebNadzor’s [Russian Federal Service on Customers’ Rights Protection and Human Well-Being Surveillance] intention to forbid Transnistrian cognac imports and sales in Russia under the pretext of its low quality.

According to the Institute’s statement, "complaints to the quality of legal Transnistrian goods certified in Russia cannot but cause deep doubts in sobriety of judgments of its author [Gennady Onischenko– the Head of the RosPotrebNadzor and Russia’s Chief Federal Sanitary Inspector]".
According to the Institute, "Tiraspol cognacs are the best of all, what are produced in our space" and Onischenko’s statements "are directly connected to started presidential [elections] campaign in the PMR".

Zatulin said it is normal that RosPotrebNadzor forbids wines of Moldova as "a clearly inimical country", but does not accept that punishment is brought down on nationals, fellow citizens in a conflict area, in an unrecognized state, whose people preserve love and fidelity to Russia".

The Russian MP said he is concerned about the damage, what "this story may cause to the Russian state’s image in opinion of fellow citizens abroad".

"An Institute for CIS Countries’ fundamental stand always consisted in [ability] to distinguish friends from enemies in the any abroad, near or far", the statement states, whose authors called on Russian authorities to cancel RosPotrebNadzor’s shameful preparations in respect of Transnistria’s fellow citizens".