Chisinau and Tiraspol are unlikely to settle their conflict over Transdniestria in the near future, says Russian Special Ambassador Sergei Gubarev representing Moscow in negotiations between Chisinau and Tiraspol.

"I said to Moldovan parliamentary Chairman Mr. Lupu yesterday that it would be naive to expect that problems that have been accumulating for twenty years could be solved in a year or in several months. It was pleasing to hear that he shares this approach and is far from being naive," Gubarev told Interfax following a meeting with Transdniestrian President Eugen Sevciuc in Tiraspol on Wednesday.

"It is unsurprising in this context that the problem certainly was not resolved during the Irish chairmanship of the OSCE," he added.

Gubarev visited Tiraspol as a member of a delegation of mediators (Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE) and observers (the EU and the U.S.) in the 5+2 negotiating process on settling the problem of Transdniestria.

In describing Ireland's OSCE chairmanship this year, Gubarev noted that it was "more active than effective."

"To be active and to be effective is somewhat different. Mr. Fouere's [Erwan Fouere, special representative of the OSCE chairperson-in-office for the Trandniestrian settlement process] desire to get the things going has certainly produced a good impression. Efficiency is something different, and in this case it depends not so much on the [OSCE] chairmanship as on Chisinau and Tiraspol. It is actually not surprising that the problem has not been resolved over the year of [Ireland's] chairmanship, he said.