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| Russia Vows ‘Harsh’ Response to Airspace Snub and to Raid of a Delegates’ Jet | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| MOSCOW — It began with a state visit by senior Russian officials to a separatist enclave in another country. It ended with Russia threatening economic retribution against several European nations on Monday, after the plane carrying the delegation was grounded in Moldova and raided by the local police. | MOSCOW — It began with a state visit by senior Russian officials to a separatist enclave in another country. It ended with Russia threatening economic retribution against several European nations on Monday, after the plane carrying the delegation was grounded in Moldova and raided by the local police. |
| Emerging as a central figure in the diplomatic drama was Dmitri O. Rogozin, the Russian deputy prime minister who led the trip and was on the list of those hit with sanctions by both the United States and European Union after Russia’s annexation of Crimea in March. | Emerging as a central figure in the diplomatic drama was Dmitri O. Rogozin, the Russian deputy prime minister who led the trip and was on the list of those hit with sanctions by both the United States and European Union after Russia’s annexation of Crimea in March. |
| An unapologetic nationalist, he is best known to users of social networks for his shows of defiant and undiplomatic bravado. | An unapologetic nationalist, he is best known to users of social networks for his shows of defiant and undiplomatic bravado. |
| “Crimea is ours. Basta,” Mr. Rogozin said on Twitter, using the Italian word for “enough,” during a visit to the Crimean Peninsula in late March as tensions soared between Russia and the United States. | “Crimea is ours. Basta,” Mr. Rogozin said on Twitter, using the Italian word for “enough,” during a visit to the Crimean Peninsula in late March as tensions soared between Russia and the United States. |
| Yet after Mr. Rogozin last week brought his particular brand of diplomacy to Moldova, a former Soviet republic with a breakaway region that has called for unification with Russia, his delegation’s jet was turned back by both Ukraine and Romania, which refused to allow the plane through their airspace for the return flight to Moscow. | Yet after Mr. Rogozin last week brought his particular brand of diplomacy to Moldova, a former Soviet republic with a breakaway region that has called for unification with Russia, his delegation’s jet was turned back by both Ukraine and Romania, which refused to allow the plane through their airspace for the return flight to Moscow. |
| When the plane returned to Chisinau, Moldova’s capital, the police stormed aboard, said Aleksey A. Zhurvalyov, a Russian lawmaker who was also a member of the delegation. | When the plane returned to Chisinau, Moldova’s capital, the police stormed aboard, said Aleksey A. Zhurvalyov, a Russian lawmaker who was also a member of the delegation. |
| “We will take this incident into account in economic cooperation with Moldova,” Prime Minister Dmitri A. Medvedev said on Monday at a meeting with Mr. Rogozin, who returned to Moscow on a commercial flight. | “We will take this incident into account in economic cooperation with Moldova,” Prime Minister Dmitri A. Medvedev said on Monday at a meeting with Mr. Rogozin, who returned to Moscow on a commercial flight. |
| “The reaction should be very harsh,” Mr. Rogozin said of Romania in remarks made after the meeting, the Interfax news service said. | “The reaction should be very harsh,” Mr. Rogozin said of Romania in remarks made after the meeting, the Interfax news service said. |
| Mr. Rogozin had visited Transnistria, a sliver of territory about the size of Rhode Island that fought a brief war with Moldova in the early 1990s and has had de facto independence since. | Mr. Rogozin had visited Transnistria, a sliver of territory about the size of Rhode Island that fought a brief war with Moldova in the early 1990s and has had de facto independence since. |
| Russia has maintained more than 1,000 troops, including peacekeepers, in Transnistria since the conflict ended, and has provided economic support to the region as well. Yet Transnistria has formally remained a part of Moldova and has not been recognized by major international states, including Russia. | Russia has maintained more than 1,000 troops, including peacekeepers, in Transnistria since the conflict ended, and has provided economic support to the region as well. Yet Transnistria has formally remained a part of Moldova and has not been recognized by major international states, including Russia. |
| After attending a celebration in Tiraspol, the capital of Transnistria, in honor of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II, members of a local Russian organization presented Mr. Rogozin’s delegation with signed petitions calling for unification with Russia. | After attending a celebration in Tiraspol, the capital of Transnistria, in honor of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II, members of a local Russian organization presented Mr. Rogozin’s delegation with signed petitions calling for unification with Russia. |
| Members of the delegation said that the police seized the petitions, which the Russian officials had planned to take back to Moscow. | Members of the delegation said that the police seized the petitions, which the Russian officials had planned to take back to Moscow. |
| While at the Victory Day ceremonies, Mr. Rogozin said Russia would not allow Transnistria to be isolated, which some read as provocation enough. Russia has created a series of breakaway regions like Transnistria in former Soviet republics that get too close to Europe, making them unpalatable allies. There has been some speculation that their ultimate objective in eastern Ukraine is the same — creating a terminally unstable region that will make the European Union and NATO leery. | While at the Victory Day ceremonies, Mr. Rogozin said Russia would not allow Transnistria to be isolated, which some read as provocation enough. Russia has created a series of breakaway regions like Transnistria in former Soviet republics that get too close to Europe, making them unpalatable allies. There has been some speculation that their ultimate objective in eastern Ukraine is the same — creating a terminally unstable region that will make the European Union and NATO leery. |
| Oazu Nantoi, a political expert at the Institute for Public Policy, a research center in Chisinau, said that Mr. Rogozin’s visit to Transnistria was an incendiary act as the growing separatist movement in eastern Ukraine has raised concerns about Russia’s influence throughout the region. | Oazu Nantoi, a political expert at the Institute for Public Policy, a research center in Chisinau, said that Mr. Rogozin’s visit to Transnistria was an incendiary act as the growing separatist movement in eastern Ukraine has raised concerns about Russia’s influence throughout the region. |
| “It is a clear political provocation,” said Mr. Nantoi, reflecting his government’s thinking. Nonetheless, Mr. Zhurvalyov, the Russian lawmaker who also heads an organization that offers humanitarian aid to Transnistria, said that Russia had no plans to annex the region. | “It is a clear political provocation,” said Mr. Nantoi, reflecting his government’s thinking. Nonetheless, Mr. Zhurvalyov, the Russian lawmaker who also heads an organization that offers humanitarian aid to Transnistria, said that Russia had no plans to annex the region. |
| Yet Russia’s relationship with Moldova could change, he added, if the country moves forward on deals with the Atlantic alliance or the European Union. Late last year, Moldova signed a pact affirming its intent to complete a free-trade agreement with the European Union. | Yet Russia’s relationship with Moldova could change, he added, if the country moves forward on deals with the Atlantic alliance or the European Union. Late last year, Moldova signed a pact affirming its intent to complete a free-trade agreement with the European Union. |