Russia: Russia yesterday plunged into the escalating border dispute between Ukraine and the Moldovan enclave of Transdniester by criticising Ukraine's decision to close the border to goods traffic.
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov accused Ukraine of mounting an "economic blockade" of the ethnic Russian enclave, and said it had broken the terms of an earlier customs agreement.
But Russia's decision may have put it on a collision course with the European Union, which has been calling for Ukraine to take action for months after reports of smuggling of weapons and drugs on the Transdniester border.
Protests have broken out along the line of confrontation between Moldova and its ethnic Russians, divided since a war in 1992, and there are fears the issue will further divide Moscow and the European Union.
Moldova has long claimed the enclave is a haven for weapon and drug smugglers.
Since last October, an EU monitoring force has been observing traffic crossing between the rebel zone and neighbouring Ukraine.
The results of its monitoring programme are not known but, last month, Ukraine and Moldova made a joint declaration that Ukraine would close its border to all shipments unless they had first been searched by Moldovan officials.
For Ukraine, the move to close a potential smuggling route is seen as an important step in its application to join the World Trade Organisation.
The dispute in effect pits an alliance of Ukraine and Moldova, backed by the EU, against Transdniester, which has enjoyed support from Russia in the past.
Transdniester claims Moldova is diverting not just freight intended for Ukraine, but also food shipments to the enclave itself.
Moldovan prime minister Vasile Tarlev denied this, saying: "There was no economic blockade of the Transdniester region. The Moldovan government is not interested in an economic blockade of its citizens."
However, Mr Lavrov earlier this week said the Moldovan move "looks like an economic blockade".
In Moscow, foreign ministry official Valery Kenyaikin told Russian television: "Ukraine has opted for the policy of isolating Transdniester economically." And Transdniester's president, Igor Smirnov, accused Moldova and Ukraine of conspiring together to pressure the enclave into rejoining its mother country.
Yesterday, ethnic Russians staged protests at several crossing points to Ukraine in the midst of long tailbacks of trucks Ukraine has refused to let cross.
Diplomats in Moscow say the issue risks deepening a rift between the West and Russia as they battle for influence amid Russia's neighbours.