Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Moldovan Prime Minister Pavel Filip have opened a joint border checkpoint whose Moldovan side is in the breakaway region of Transdniester.
Poroshenko said after the ceremony at the Kuchurgan-Pervomaisk checkpoint on July 17 that Kyiv is ready to contribute to "the full restoration of Moldova's territorial integrity."
Separatist authorities in mainly Russian-speaking Transdniester and Russian lawmakers have condemned the plans to open the joint Ukrainian-Moldovan border checkpoint alleging it is a step toward an economic blockade.
Filip rejected the allegation calling it "mere speculation."
Moscow-backed Transdniester, which borders on Ukraine's Odesa region, declared independence from Moldova in 1990. The two sides fought a brief war in 1992 that ended when the Russian military intervened on the side of Transdniester, which is not recognized as an independent nation by any country.
Russia maintains a 1,200-strong military force in the region despite Moldova's repeated calls for it to be withdrawn and replaced with international peacekeepers.