Russia-Moldova rail traffic halted by repairs

MOSCOW, Sep 5 (Reuters) State-owned Russian Railways said today that repairs of a bridge in Ukraine had halted traffic between Russia and Moldova, leaving passengers stranded in trains and at stations.

Russia does not have a common border with ex-Soviet Moldova.

But hundreds of thousands of Moldovans work in Russia and railway traffic through Ukraine is especially heavy during summer holiday period.

''Thousands of passengers, including Russian citizens, have been trapped in trains and at railway stations,'' the company statement said. ''Urgent action is needed to evacuate them.'' Russian Railways said that bridge repairs, launched in Ukraine on September 1, had diverted many trains and created what it described a ''critical situation'' on the railway network.

The company said seven passenger trains had got stuck in the same place. The statement said the company wanted emergency talks between railway officials of the three countries involved.

Ukrainian and Moldovan officials could not be immediately reached for comments.

REUTERS SHB KP2100