Which states does Transnistria border with? School encyclopedia
Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic(Mold. Republic of Moldovenyaske Nistryane, Ukrainian. Transnistrian Moldavian Republic) or Transnistria (Mold. Transnistria, Ukrainian. Transnistria) is an unrecognized state in southeastern Europe. According to the administrative-territorial division of Moldova, the territory of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic is part of Moldova, although in fact the territory of Transnistria is not controlled by Moldova (with the exception of a few villages). The total length of the border of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic is 816 km: of which 411 km are with the territory controlled by the authorities of Moldova, 405 km are with Ukraine. It has no access to the sea.
Story
Since ancient times, this territory was inhabited by Tiragetae (a Thracian tribe). In the early Middle Ages, the territory of modern Transnistria was inhabited by the Slavic tribes Ulichi and Tivertsy, as well as nomadic Turks - the Pechenegs and Polovtsians. For a certain time, this territory was part of Kievan Rus, and from the 60s. XIV century - Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Northern Transnistria was part of the historical region of Podolia, and southern Transnistria became part of the Golden Horde (1242), from the end of the 15th century it became part of the Crimean Khanate, and from the second half of the 18th century it was subordinated to the Kaushan Horde. According to the Treaty of Jassy (January 9, 1792) it became part of the Russian Empire. At that time it was a sparsely populated region whose population was mixed - mostly Moldovans, but also Jews, Ukrainians, Serbs, and Bulgarians.
Since the end of the 18th century, the Russian Empire has been settling this region to protect its southwestern border. Russian authorities encourage the migration of Bulgarians, Russians, Germans, Armenians, Greeks and Moldovans to Transnistria.
Throughout the 19th century, Transnistria, with the cities of Grigoriopol, Dubossary and Tiraspol, was part of the Russian Empire (Podolsk and Kherson provinces), Bendery was part of the Bessarabia province. From 1918 to 1940, Bendery and the right bank part of the Slobodzeya region were part of Romania as part of Bessarabia. The left bank part of Transnistria since 1918 (according to the old style - 1917) was part of the Odessa Soviet Republic, and after the German occupation - part of Ukraine, from which it became part of the USSR in 1922.
1920–1940s
Until 1940, Transnistria was part of the Ukrainian SSR. In 1924, on the initiative of G.I. Kotovsky, P.D. Tkachenko and others, the Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (MASSR) was created here as part of the Ukrainian SSR. It was supposed to become a springboard for the return of the Moldovan regions located on the right bank of the Dniester, annexed to Romania in 1918. The Soviet Union did not recognize their rejection, citing, in particular, the fact that Soviet demands to hold a national plebiscite on the ownership of this territory on the territory of the former Bessarabia province were twice rejected by the Romanian side. Moldovan, Ukrainian and Russian were declared the official languages of the MASSR. The capital of the republic became the city of Balta, but from 1928 it was moved to Birzulu (now Kotovsk), and in 1929 to Tiraspol, which retained this function until 1940.
After the defeat of Poland in the war against Germany, the entry of Soviet troops into the territory of Western Ukraine and Belarus in September 1939 and the surrender of France in May-June 1940, on June 26, 1940, the USSR in the form of an ultimatum demanded that Romania return the territory of Bessarabia to the USSR, as well as Northern Bukovina and the Hertsy region. Having lost the support of France and faced with Hungarian territorial claims in the west, royal Romania was forced to accept the ultimatum put forward by Stalin. The returned territory of Bessarabia (with the exception of Southern Bessarabia, included in the Odessa region, and Northern Bessarabia, which, together with Northern Bukovina and the Hertsy region, formed the Chernivtsi region of the Ukrainian SSR) was annexed to part of the MASSR and transformed into the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic with its capital in Chisinau. Balta and the surrounding areas remained part of the Ukrainian SSR, but without autonomous status.
After the creation of the MSSR, numerous immigrants from Russia and Ukraine went to Transnistria, helping to create local industry. Most of the industrial enterprises of the Moldavian SSR (now Moldova) were initially concentrated in the territory of Transnistria, since the economy of the rest of Moldova (Bessarabia) during its stay as part of Romania (1918-1940) was mainly agricultural in nature and was the most backward of all the provinces of Romania , and industrial enterprises were mainly engaged in processing agricultural products (the share of food industry products in 1937 was 92.4%).
The Great Patriotic War
The new geopolitical situation did not last long - already in 1941, Germany and its allies attacked the USSR, and Romania had the opportunity to regain the territories annexed a year ago by the Soviet Union. In addition to Bessarabia and northern Bukovina, which became part of Great Romania, the entire region between the Southern Bug and Dniester rivers (including the cities of Balta, Vinnitsa, Odessa and the right bank part of Nikolaev), which was called Transnistria (“Transnistria”), came under the control of the Romanian administration.
In 1944, with the entry of the Red Army into the Balkans, the borders returned to the situation that existed at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War.
Period after 1945
In 1956, the 14th Army was stationed in the Moldavian SSR (including on the territory of Transnistria). She remained here after the collapse of the USSR, guarding weapons and ammunition depots - reserves created in case of hostilities in the South-Eastern theater of operations in Europe. In 1984, the army headquarters was transferred from Chisinau to Tiraspol.
In 1990, before the collapse of the USSR, Transnistria provided 40% of Moldova's GDP and produced 90% of electricity, since in the village. The Moldavian State District Power Plant was built in Dnestrovsk, which was supposed to produce electricity for export to the CMEA countries.
Education PMR
The Transnistrian Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic was proclaimed as a Soviet republic within the USSR at the 2nd Extraordinary Congress of Deputies of all levels of Transnistria, held in Tiraspol on September 2, 1990.
On December 22, 1990, USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev signed a decree “On measures to normalize the situation in the SSR Moldova”, in the 4th paragraph of which it was decided “to consider as having no legal force... the decisions of the II Congress of Deputies of Soviets of various levels from some settlements of Transnistria dated 2 September 1990 on the proclamation ... of the Moldavian Transnistrian Soviet Socialist Republic."
On August 27, 1991, the Parliament of the SSR of Moldova adopted Law No. 691 “On the Declaration of Independence,” which declared the law of August 2, 1940 “On the Formation of the Union Moldavian SSR” null and void, according to which the MASSR became part of the Moldavian SSR, emphasizing that “without asking the population of Bessarabia, the north of Bukovina and the Hertsa region, forcibly captured on June 28, 1940, as well as the population of the Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (Transnistria), formed on October 12, 1924, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, in violation of its constitutional powers, adopted a law on August 2, 1940 “On the formation of the Union Moldavian SSR.” Often, supporters of the sovereignty of the PMR argue that by their decision, the deputies of Moldova outlawed the only legal document regulating the presence of Pridnestrovie within Moldova. However, since UN member states recognize the independence of Moldova precisely in the context of the collapse of the USSR, and not in accordance with the 1991 law, thus considering it a successor state of the Moldavian SSR, the PMR’s arguments are not considered within the UN. Despite this, the law of August 27, 1991 was not repealed in Moldova itself and continues to be in effect.
On November 5, 1991, due to the collapse of the USSR, the PMSSR was renamed the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic.
Administrative-territorial structure
The Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic is a unitary state. The main part of the republic, with the exception of the city of Bendery and part of the Slobodzeya region, lies on the left bank of the Dniester River.
The territory of Transnistria is divided into 7 administrative units: 5 districts - Grigoriopolsky, Dubossary, Kamensky, Rybnitsky and Slobodzeya, as well as 2 cities of republican subordination - Bendery and Tiraspol
In accordance with the PMR Law of July 17, 2002 No. 155-Z-III (SAZ 02-29), the following types of administrative-territorial units are distinguished:
- urban settlements (urban settlements, cities) - settlements in which more than 5,000 people live and the bulk of the working population is not employed in agriculture;
- villages - settlements that cannot be classified as cities, but for the majority of the active population, whose main activity is not directly related to agriculture;
- rural settlements (rural settlements) - villages, rural-type settlements, dacha settlements, the bulk of the population of which are employed in the agricultural sector. Among them, rural councils stand out - administrative-territorial units, which, with their fixed boundaries, cover one or more settlements along with the lands under their jurisdiction.
Seven villages on the left (Vasilievka, Dorotskoe, Cocieri, Cosnita, Novaya Molovata, Pogrebya, Pyryta) and one on the right (Copanca) banks are administered by the official bodies of the Republic of Moldova. On the border between Moldova and Transnistria is the city of Bendery, part of which (the village of Varnitsa) is controlled by Moldova, and the rest of the territory is controlled by Transnistria.
The extreme northern settlement of Transnistria is the village of Frunzovka, the extreme western is Red October, the extreme eastern is the village of Staraya Andriyashevka and Pervomaisk, the extreme southern is Nezavertailovka.
Population
The population is 547 thousand people (2005). In 1990, the population of Transnistria was 730,000 inhabitants. Until 1992, there was a constant upward trend, but from this year the number of residents began to steadily decline. The working-age population is predominantly male.
National composition
As of 2004, Moldovans make up 31.9% of the republic's population. Two thirds of the population of Transnistria are Russians (30.3%) and Ukrainians (28.8%), Bulgarians (2%), Belarusians and others also live. In general, residents of 35 nationalities live on the territory of Transnistria, including Armenians, Jews, Gagauz, Tatars, etc.
Religion
The bulk of the population professes Orthodoxy; there are religious communities of Armenian Gregorians, Old Believers, Catholics, and Jews. Among the Protestant groups, Baptists, Seventh-day Adventists and the Church of the Living God (charismatics) are active. Jehovah's Witnesses are also active.
Economy
A significant part of the industry of the former MSSR is concentrated on the territory of Transnistria. The basis of the economy of the PMR is made up of large enterprises, such as the Moldavian Metallurgical Plant, the Moldavian State District Power Plant, the Tirotex textile mill, the Quint cognac factory, the Sheriff company and others.
The main problems of the region's economy are mass emigration, an aging population, a negative foreign trade balance, high inflation, unrecognized status and dependence on neighbors.
The cities of Tiraspol, Bendery and Rybnitsa play a major role in the modern economy of Transnistria.
By the end of 2010, it is planned to create a new Euroregion “Dniester”, which, in addition to the three regions of Moldova and the Vinnitsa region of Ukraine, will also include the Kamensky and Rybnitsa regions of Transnistria.
Transnistrian conflict
The Transnistrian conflict (Mold. Conflictul din Transnistria) is a conflict between Moldova and an unrecognized state that controls part of the declared territory of Moldova - the Transnistrian Moldavian Republic (Transnistria), under whose control is mainly the left bank of the Dniester (Mold. Transnistria), whose population is Moldovans , Russians and Ukrainians (in approximately equal proportions).
The conflict, which began in Soviet times (1989), after Moldova gained independence, led to armed confrontation and numerous casualties on both sides in the spring and summer of 1992. Armed action ceased after Russian troops under the command of General Alexander Lebed intervened in the conflict to protect civilians and stop the bloodshed.
Currently, security in the conflict zone is ensured by the Joint Peacekeeping Forces of Russia, Moldova, Transnistria and military observers from Ukraine. Transnistria is the only region in Eastern Europe where, after the deployment of a peacekeeping contingent, military operations ceased and were not resumed. During numerous negotiations mediated by Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE, it was not possible to reach an agreement on the status of Transnistria. The Moldovan side has repeatedly spoken out in favor of the withdrawal of Russian troops from the region. Relations between the parties to the conflict remain tense.
Army
The armed forces of the PMR include ground forces, air forces, internal and border troops, as well as Cossack formations. The regular units consist of about seven thousand people. There are a thousand people in the voluntary Cossack detachments. The reservists or people's militia number about 80 thousand people. The army consists of three motorized rifles, one artillery brigade and one Cossack regiment. The Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of State Security are responsible for two special battalions: “Dniester” and “Delta” - and a separate motorized police battalion. The level of training of all units is quite high. The armament consists mainly of outdated equipment - more than a hundred BTR-60 and BTR-70, more than a hundred different artillery systems and mortars, including Grad multiple rocket launchers. There is a tank battalion with twenty T-64BV tanks. The local air force has Mi-6 and Mi-8 helicopters, but no attack helicopters or combat aircraft.
Domestic policy
The dominant role in the internal economic life of the PMR is played by the Sheriff group of companies, covering various industries.
According to the regulation of the European Commission 2005/147/CFSP, citizen of the Russian Federation Igor Smirnov, his sons Vladimir and Oleg, as well as other leaders of the PMR are prohibited from entering EU countries. In 2010, the PMR leadership was temporarily allowed entry into EU countries.
Peaceful settlement
Over the past years, Moldovan and Transnistrian authorities have made several attempts to improve relations. The parties were almost able to reach an agreement in 2003 on the basis of a settlement plan proposed by Dmitry Kozak, who at that time held the post of deputy head of the presidential administration of the Russian Federation. According to this plan, Moldova was to become an “asymmetric federation”, and the PMR and Gagauzia would receive special status and the ability to block bills undesirable for the autonomies. Moldova pledged to maintain neutrality and demobilize the army, as well as provide Russia with the right to station Russian troops on the territory of Transnistria for a period of 20 years as “guarantors” of the conflict resolution. Literally at the last moment, under pressure from the OSCE and student protests, Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin refused to sign the agreement, saying that it gives unilateral benefits to the PMR and has a hidden goal - recognition of the independence of Transnistria. Negotiations resumed only in 2005 within the framework of the regional organization GUUAM on the basis of proposals presented by Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko.
According to the new plan, by August 2005 the Parliament of Moldova was supposed to pass a law on the special status of Transnistria, according to which the region should have a flag, a coat of arms and three state languages - Russian, Ukrainian and Moldavian. If Moldova ceases to be an independent state, Transnistria will be able to secede from it. In December 2005, the PMR, under the control of international observers, was supposed to hold early parliamentary elections, and Moldova pledged to recognize their results. Then Moldova and the PMR, with the participation of Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE, had to differentiate powers between the parties within the framework of the law on the status of Transnistria. Moldova then had to sign an international treaty obliging it to implement the law on Transnistria. The guarantors were to be Russia, Ukraine, the OSCE and, possibly, the EU and the USA.
The “Yushchenko Plan” allowed for direct communication between representatives of the international community and the PMR without the participation of Moldova. The document did not contain demands for the withdrawal of the Russian military contingent from the territory of the PMR, which Moldova insists on.
On July 22, 2005, the Parliament of Moldova approved the bill “on the status of Transnistria.” According to this document, Russian peacekeepers must leave the region by December 31, 2006, and Transnistria is part of Moldova with autonomy rights. The status of Transnistria is defined as “an administrative-territorial entity in the form of a republic within the Republic of Moldova.” The region should enter the single economic, customs and currency space of Moldova, but will receive its own constitution and government formed by the Supreme Council of Transnistria, a legislative body that will be elected by popular vote.
2006 - crisis and prospects
In May 2006, consultations were held between the Russian Foreign Ministry and the presidents of Transnistria and Abkhazia.
In June 2006, PMR President Igor Smirnov said that Transnistria is ready to take Moldova’s place in the CIS if it leaves the Commonwealth.
In June 2006, the heads of the PMR, Abkhazia and South Ossetia at a summit in Sukhumi, in addition to the Commonwealth of Unrecognized States (CIS-2), concluded a Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance and signed a Declaration on the Establishment of a Community for Democracy and the Rights of Peoples, which involves not only economic and political cooperation between the republics, but also the creation of collective peacekeeping armed forces that can replace Russian peacekeepers and jointly repel possible forceful actions of “small metropolises” and attempts to resolve the situation by military means.
In June 2006, the Russian President and Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the fate of unrecognized states should be determined by the will of their population based on the right to self-determination.
Referendum on independence of Transnistria
On September 17, 2006, a referendum was held on the territory of the PMR, to which two questions were asked: “Do you think it is possible to maintain the course of international recognition of Transnistria and join Russia” and “Do you think it is possible for Transnistria to become part of Moldova.” Moldova, the OSCE, the European Union and a number of other international organizations declared the referendum illegal and undemocratic.
97% of Transnistrian citizens who took part in the referendum spoke for the independence of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (PMR) and its subsequent free accession to the Russian Federation (RF). 2.3% of voters voted against integration with the Russian Federation.
3.4% of citizens of Transnistria spoke in favor of abandoning the course of independence of the PMR and the subsequent entry of the republic into Moldova, and 94.6% of referendum participants spoke against such integration. 2% of voters could not make a choice.
According to official data from the Central Election Commission of Transnistria, 78.6% of citizens who had the right to vote, or about 306 thousand out of 389 thousand people, took part in the referendum on September 17, 2006.
Transport and international communication in Transnistria
As an unrecognized state, the PMR experiences some difficulties in terms of international communications. Moldova runs some trains bypassing Transnistria. And yet there is a bus and train connection between Tiraspol and Bendery with Moldova, Ukraine, Russia, and Romania.
Transnistrian Moldavian Republic, PMR) is an unrecognized state on the left bank of the Dniester, formed as a result of the collapse of the USSR. The capital is Tiraspol (founded by A.V. Suvorov).
Population is about 350 thousand people. (35% Russians, 25% Ukrainians, 30% Moldovans), about 20% have Russian citizenship.
The PMR has a developed economy; on its territory there is the Moldavian Hydroelectric Power Station, the Moldavian Metallurgical Plant, the Tiratex textile plant, the Floare shoe factory famous in Europe, the Moldavkabel plant, the famous Quint cognac plant, etc.
Thanks to this, the standard of living in the PMR, even despite the blockade and unrecognition, is twice as high as in neighboring Moldova. The left bank of the Dniester (Transnistria) for a certain time was part of Ancient Rus', and from the 14th century. - The Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia, whose territory extended from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea.
Since 1242, southern Transnistria has been part of the Golden Horde, and since the end of the 15th century, it has been part of the Crimean Khanate (a vassal of the Ottoman Porte). After the third Russian-Turkish war (1787–1791), according to the Treaty of Iasi (January 9, 1792), the lands between the Southern Bug and the Dniester, including Transnistria, were ceded to the Russian Empire.
The most glorious pages of Russian history are connected with this war. The victories of Alexander Suvorov at Focsani, Rymnik and Izmail are the golden fund of world military science! To strengthen the new borders of the empire, in 1792, the Sredinnaya fortress was founded on the left bank of the Dniester, near the walls of which the city of Tiraspol grew (city status since 1795).
Due to the devastation of the lands, the government encouraged the resettlement of Ukrainian and Russian peasants to Transnistria. In turn, Bessarabia became part of the Russian Empire in 1812 and became a separate province, since the territory of Transnistria was divided between the Kherson and Podolsk provinces. In December 1917, Bessarabia, together with the city of Bendery and the right bank part of the Slobodzeya region, was occupied by Romania. The left bank part of Transnistria became part of the Odessa Soviet Republic, and after the German occupation - part of Ukraine, with which it became part of the USSR in 1922.
In 1924, on the territory of Transnistria and parts of Odessa and Vinnitsa regions. The Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was created as part of the Ukrainian SSR.
Until 1929, the capital of the republic was the city of Balta, from 1929 to 1940. it was Tiraspol. In 1940, the Soviet government managed to achieve the transfer of Bessarabia to the USSR. The returned territory of Bessarabia (with the exception of Southern Bessarabia, included in the Odessa region, and Northern Bessarabia, which, together with Northern Bukovina and the Hertsy region, formed the Chernivtsi region of the Ukrainian SSR) was annexed to the MASSR, created on the basis of Transnistria, and transformed into the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic with its capital in Chisinau.
At the end of the 1980s. Against the backdrop of common centrifugal tendencies with the USSR, the elites of Moldova clearly demonstrated their desire for integration with Romania and began to pursue a discriminatory policy towards representatives of a non-titular nation.
On August 31, 1989, the law “On the functioning of languages on the territory of the Moldavian SSR”, adopted by the Supreme Soviet of the MSSR, came into force, establishing only Moldavian as the state language and introducing - without taking into account the interests and civil rights of the non-Moldavian population - Latin writing.
On September 2, 1990, Transnistrian deputies proclaimed the Transnistrian Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic (PMSSR) as a Soviet republic within the USSR.
All this led to the fact that already in the fall of 1990, the confrontation between Moldova and Transnistria escalated into an armed struggle, and the Moldovans were the first to organize the clash. Moldovan OPON forces attempted to liquidate local authorities in the city of Dubossary. According to information from the Transnistrian side, Moldovan and Romanian nationalists took part in armed actions on the side of Moldova with the knowledge and under the leadership of the Chisinau law enforcement agencies.
On August 25, 1991, the Supreme Council of the PMSSR adopted the “Declaration of Independence of the PMSSR”, and on November 5, 1991, due to the collapse of the USSR, the PMSSR was renamed the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (PMR).
The Pridnestrovians had to defend their independence from Moldova with arms in hand. As a result of the bloody clashes in March - July 1992, about 400 military personnel and more than 600 civilians from the Left Bank were killed. At that time, full-scale battles took place in the Bendery and Dubossary regions using tanks and artillery. Only the tough position of the command of the 14th Army, personally of Army Commander A. Lebed and the officers of the Russian General Staff, who took an unambiguous position, prevented the further development of the armed conflict.
Realizing that it would not be possible to suppress the Transnistrian aspirations for self-determination by armed means, Chisinau, supported by the West, switched to economic war.
Hope for a resolution of the situation appeared after the communist V. Voronin came to power in Moldova in 2001, using pro-Russian slogans. By 2002, Russia and Moldova were able to reach mutual understanding on a number of important issues, which allowed them to successfully develop economic cooperation. This warming allowed Moscow in 2003 to propose to Chisinau a plan for a peaceful settlement of the Transnistrian problem. According to the proposed plan, which is also called the “Kozak Plan,” relations between Transnistria and Moldova were to be built on a federal basis, and Russian peacekeepers were to be in the PMR until 2020.
But in November 2003, President of Moldova V. Voronin, after a call from the US Embassy, rejected this proposal and spoke in favor of strengthening the role of the US and the EU in the settlement process. The presence of Russian peacekeepers in the conflict zone before 2020 did not fit into the plans of Moldova, which wants to annex the PMR with the help of NATO forces.
In February 2006, the Moldovan delegation interrupted negotiations in the “5+2” format (Moldova, Transnistria, Russia, OSCE, Ukraine, as well as observers from the EU and the USA) on resolving the Transnistrian conflict, and on March 3, the economic blockade of the PMR began.
Chisinau refuses to sign the so-called “transit protocol”, which, under the terms of the 1997 memorandum, would give Transnistria the right to conduct independent economic activities. Ukraine also joined the blockade of Transnistria, as did Moldova, which is striving to join NATO. In response, Russia, concerned about the fate of the Transnistrian population, sent a cargo of humanitarian aid to the unrecognized republic.
In June 2006, a scientific report “State sovereignty of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic in accordance with international legislation” was presented in Washington. It was prepared by a group of foreign experts - scientists from the universities of Oxford, Stanford, Harvard, Cambridge, as well as participants in the Dayton agreements on the division of Yugoslavia. Experts state: “Legal and factual analyzes show that during the collapse of the USSR, the Moldavian SSR split into two successor states: Moldova and Transnistria, and that the current border between them corresponds entirely to the traditional historical border separating them since the early Middle Ages. At the time of Moldova’s secession from the Moldavian SSR, Transnistria had already separated and administered its territory independently of Chisinau.”
Accustomed to thinking in categories other than politicians, scientists conclude: the Republic of Moldova has no reason to lay claim to the territory of the left bank of the Dniester.
On September 17, 2006, a nationwide referendum was held in the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic on the issues of relations between Transnistria and Russia and Moldova. 78.6% of PMR citizens who had the right to vote took part in it. 97% of them spoke in favor of the independence of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic and its subsequent free accession to the Russian Federation. Only 2.3% of voters voted against integration with the Russian Federation. Only 3.4% of referendum participants were in favor of abandoning the course of independence of the PMR and the subsequent entry of the republic into Moldova, while 94.6% were against such integration.
The United States, the European Union, the Council of Europe, the OSCE and Moldova declared the referendum illegitimate. Ukraine did not recognize him either. And this is not surprising. Transnistria passed another test of statehood, at the same time demonstrating the predominance of pro-Russian sentiments in the republic. This was precisely the reason for the acute rejection of the election results on the part of those forces for which it is extremely unprofitable for Russia to strengthen its positions on the “European outskirts”.
In December 2006, I. Smirnov was once again elected president of the PMR.
The situation with the recognition by a number of countries of the self-proclaimed state of Kosovo has given the residents of Transnistria hope that the issue of recognizing the independence of the PMR, which has much more rights to do so, can be resolved in the near future. However, guided by the policy of double standards, the European Union, OSCE and NATO do not even consider the possibility of recognizing the sovereignty of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic.
Excellent definition
Incomplete definition ↓
(PMR) an unrecognized state in southeastern Europe. It borders on the west with Moldova, on the east with Ukraine. It has no access to the sea. According to the Constitution of Moldova, it is part of the territory of the Republic of Moldova. The area of the country is 4.2 thousand km2. Capital Tiraspol.
The population is 550 thousand people. (2007). In 1990, the population of Transnistria was 730 thousand inhabitants. Almost 30.0% of the population are Ukrainians, 28.0% Russians, about 30.0% Moldovans, Bulgarians, Belarusians and others also live, representatives of 35 nationalities, including Jews, Gagauz, Tatars, etc.
Reasons for the conflict in Transnistria:
1) Transnistria was an industrialized part of the agrarian Republic of Moldova. The overwhelming majority of large industrial enterprises in Transnistria were subordinate to the union and were focused on all-union needs. The industry of Transnistria was more connected with the industrial centers of Ukraine and Russia than with Moldova itself. In addition, quite developed modern high-tech industries were located in Transnistria.
This industrial structure of Transnistria required highly educated executive and managerial personnel. Therefore, the directors' corps of industrial enterprises, as well as the party nomenklatura of the region, were staffed mainly not from Moldovans, but from the circle of the all-Union nomenklatura, residents of large cities in Russia and Ukraine. For this reason, the Transnistrian nomenklatura had fairly close ties with Moscow and considered itself part of the all-Union nomenklatura, representing to a certain extent, both in Transnistria and in Moldova as a whole, the interests of the Union Center. She maintained purely nominal relations with the republican party nomenklatura of Moldova;
2) the nomenklatura of Transnistria was devoted to communist ideology, the integrity of the Soviet state and the socialist administrative economy. At this time, the process of ethnopoliticization of Moldovan society and the ruling party nomenclature occurred very quickly. Moreover, this process took place not under the slogans of the rise of the Moldovan, national, but under the sign of the Romanianization of Moldovan society.
In the spring of 1990, as a result of democratic elections, representatives of the Popular Front, which united both national democrats and ultra-nationalists, came to power. The government of the Republic of Moldova was headed by M. Druc, who sympathized with nationalist sentiments. Thus, the Transnistrian nomenklatura has lost any prospect of being represented both in republican structures and in Moldovan society as a whole.
On August 2, 1990, based on the results of a national referendum, the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic was proclaimed. Transnistria abandons the Moldavian tricolor and uses the USSR flag as its official flag. It was subsequently changed;
4) linguistic factor in the conflict: on August 31, 1989, Moldova adopted a law stating that the official language is the language of the titular nation, establishing the Moldovan language as the state language, identical to Romanian, with Latin spelling. The predominant Russian-speaking part of the population of Transnistria was excluded from both the cultural and information environment of the Republic of Moldova;
5) historical background: historically, Transnistria began to be part of the Republic of Moldova only in 1940. From 1924 to 1940, it existed as a state entity in the form of the Moldavian Autonomous Socialist Republic within Ukraine. From 1792 to 1917, Transnistria was part of the Russian Empire. Bessarabia was incorporated into the empire in 1812.
The history of Transnistria's statehood shows that it has the same historical rights to return to Russia or Ukraine as the inclusion of that part of Moldova, which was called Bessarabia, into Romania. Of course, Moldova’s move towards rapprochement with Romania could not but cause polarization of the positions of the population of Transnistria;
6) political prerequisites: an important political prerequisite that provided Transnistria with the opportunity to determine its new state status, and, therefore, made its participation in the conflict expedient, was the problem of union autonomy. Being part of the renewed Union made it possible for the Transnistrian nomenklatura to receive the same state status as the republican nomenklatura of Moldova. The Martovsky (1991) draft of the new Union Treaty provided for an increase in the subjects of the Union, which could already be not only the Union republics, but also the autonomies within them. In this way, the Union Center tried to keep the union republics within the USSR. The adoption of such a Treaty automatically meant the secession of Transnistria from Moldova.
Features of the emergence of the conflict in Transnistria: despite the fact that Transnistria makes up about 12.2% of the territory of Moldova, historically it considered itself an equal subject in relation to the other part of the republic; the direction of the actions of the political forces that took part in the conflict was not related to the assertion of the sovereignty of Moldova, but, on the contrary, was subordinated to integration into foreign state entities and orientation to external factors, both on the part of Chisinau, which sought to unify with Romania, and on the part of Transnistria , seeking to Russia.
In order to stop hostilities, on July 21, 1992, a meeting was held in Moscow between the President of the Republic of Moldova M. Snegur and the President of the Russian Federation B. Yeltsin, at which an Agreement on the principles of conflict resolution in the Transnistrian region was signed. From that moment on, the conflict between Chisinau and Transnistria entered the stage of de-escalation. The Moscow (1992) agreement became the basis for the further development of the conflict resolution process. The main political and legal principles that are set out in it:
- respect for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova;
- strict observance of human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to national minorities;
- determination by political methods, including parliamentary means, of the special status of the Left Bank of the Transnistrian region within the Republic of Moldova;
- granting the population of the Left Bank the right to determine their own future in the event of a change in the state status of Moldova;
- exclusion of any actions on anyone’s part that could impede the resolution of the conflict by peaceful political means.
However, the implementation of these principles in practice turned out to be very difficult, since there are a number of unresolved key problems:
1) the problem of determining a mutually acceptable political status of Transnistria. A mutually agreed upon idea of the political status of Transnistria is expressed in the concept of a “common state”. The main problem with this is the different interpretation of this concept by the Moldovan and Transnistrian sides. Chisinau stated that this state is the Republic of Moldova (RM), which is ready to grant special status to the Transnistrian region. In 2005, the Parliament of Moldova adopted a law on the special legal status of Transnistria, which established territorial autonomy for the Transnistrian region within Moldova. The authorities and people of Transnistria abandoned autonomy in favor of independence. In September 2006, a referendum was held in the PMR. 97% of the citizens of Transnistria who took part in the referendum spoke in favor of the independence of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic and its subsequent free accession to the Russian Federation. In total, 78.9% of the republic's population took part in the voting. The results of this referendum were not accepted by either Moldova or the international community represented by the UN.
The Pridnestrovian side sees a common state as a union of two sovereign, independent states, two equal subjects of international law - the Republic of Moldova and the Moldavian Transnistrian Republic. She advocates confederal relations with Moldova. But this option may be acceptable in the case when both subjects of the confederation have already become independent states;
2) problems of an economic nature: despite the fact that the parties agreed to have a common economy, the common economic space of Moldova and Transnistria can only be discussed in the foreign economic aspect. Pridnestrovian products are sold on the world market as products of the Republic of Moldova, using Moldovan quotas and Moldovan customs legislation. But in the internal economic aspect, Pridnestrovie has an independent economy.
The main problem is that after the events of 90, due to objective and subjective reasons, there were different priorities in the social development of both Transnistria and the Republic of Moldova. Moldova has proclaimed the guiding principles of democracy and the free market; in Transnistria, all state property is under the personal control of the leader of the republic and his narrow circle. The Transnistrian nomenklatura adheres to command-administrative methods of economic management. At the same time, Moldova managed to owe Transnistria $31 million for electricity and is in no hurry to pay it back;
3) the problem of the withdrawal of Russian troops from Transnistria and the reduction of the Russian military presence in the region. The Russian 14th Army took part in the Transnistrian conflict on the side of the Transnistrian people, then after the establishment of peace, with its help, a regular army of Transnistria with a strength of 5 thousand people was created, as well as a Russian peacekeeping battalion, which still operates in the security zone. Moldova sees the presence of the 14th Army on its territory as a threat to its national security. Tiraspol considers the 14th Army to be the guarantor of its security and peace. In addition, Transnistria is putting forward its claims to part of the property of the 14th Army.
Although the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic remains an unrecognized state, as a state the republic has proven its viability. The political power in Transnistria is legitimate, because it was elected by the population of the republic as a result of elections.
One of the phenomena of the modern world is “unrecognized states”. They have their own names, capitals and constitutions; its economy, its documents, its currency; their ideology, and often their nation... but their passports are not valid anywhere outside their territory, which is usually very modest; their currency will not be accepted by any bank on Earth except their own; you won’t see foreign embassies in their capitals; they are not even marked on maps. Sometimes they are recognized - by several countries (like Abkhazia), half the world (like Palestine) or the whole world (like South Sudan). The former USSR, as the last collapsed empire, is especially rich in such “splinters” - Transnistria, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Nagorno-Karabakh, and in the past also Gagauzia (1990-1994) and Ichkeria (1990-2000).
They all started with wars. And without visiting Transnistria, you can’t help but imagine it as, if not a “hot spot,” then a “besieged fortress.” It was all the more surprising to discover, on this narrow strip between the Dniester and Ukraine, a poor, but quite living state. Most of all, the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic resembles some kind of Russian national autonomy such as Udmurtia or Khakassia. But the PMR is not at all similar to Moldova
.
I will also talk about Bendery, Tiraspol, Rybnitsa and the rural outback, which I visited with wwvvwwvv
And bes_arab
, but first - general impressions: people, signs, features and the central square of the capital.
As a disclaimer. One must write about places involved in conflicts either 100% positively or 100% negatively - after all, the slightest sympathy for “that” side by “that” side is unforgivable. If I see even 1% of good in the PMR, I am a bloody imperialist who dreams of seeing Russian tanks in Chisinau, Tbilisi and Riga; if I see even 1% of bad things in the PMR, I have sold out to the West, I’m fawning over Saakashvili and I’m writing an order for the VashObkom. What if not 1%, but approximately 50%, like in any country? In general, I am mentally preparing to find myself under cross-throwing, and I warn you, as always - for rudeness and personalization, as well as insulting any country - a ban. And also - keep in mind that I was a guest here and not for long, so much of what you may consider malicious “propaganda” from either side may in fact be just my accidental mistake.
2. In the center of Bendery.
Transnistria is very small even compared to Moldova: area - 4.16 thousand square kilometers (this is 4 times larger than Moscow within the Moscow Ring Road), population - 518 thousand people, which is less than Chisinau alone, and in principle for this In two indicators, the PMR roughly corresponds to Luxembourg, the largest of the microstates in Europe. The main cities are Tiraspol (148 thousand inhabitants) and Bendery (98 thousand), as well as, from south to north, the regional centers of Slobodzeya (20 thousand, the only one south of Tiraspol), Grigoriopol (9.5 thousand), Dubossary (25 thousand), Rybnitsa (50 thousand), (9.2 thousand). There are approximately equal numbers of Moldovans (32%), Russians (30%) and Ukrainians (29%) living here, and since the PMR’s passports are not recognized in the world just like it itself, almost everyone has dual citizenship, mostly some kind from these three countries.
3. In the center of Rybnitsa.
The prehistory of Transnistria is somewhat more complicated, and fully explains its isolation from Moldova. It became part of Russia 20 years earlier - in 1792, the southern part - after the next Russian-Turkish war, and the northern part - under the II section of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Accordingly, historically, the southern half of Transnistria belonged to New Russia (Kherson province, Tiraspol district), the northern half belonged to Podolia (Podolsk province, Baltic and Olgopol districts), while the Bessarabian province included only Bendery. At the same time, in Romanian historiography there is a point of view that already in those days Slavicized Moldovans lived beyond the Dniester, therefore the left bank of the Dniester with Odessa is, as it were, originally Romanesque territory. It is interesting that if in Romania and in the West this territory is called Transnistria (“Transnistria”), in the local Moldavian it is called Nistrenia (Dniester region).
4. At the market in Tiraspol.
Be that as it may, the first prototype of the PMR was the Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (1924-40), which did not include Bendery, but included the north of the current Odessa region - its first centers were Balta (1924-28), Birzula (1928-29, now Kotovsk) and finally Tiraspol. There were several such “seemingly hinting” regions in the USSR in the 1930s: the Karelo-Finnish SSR, the Buryat-Mongolian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic... but only in Moldova did things go beyond hints, and perhaps if it weren’t for the Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, we would now have at most Tiraspol region of Ukraine, or even just areas of Odessa and Vinnytsia regions. But about the events of 1989-1992 - later... The Romanians created their prototype of the PMR during the Second World War: Transnistria with its capital in Odessa, even during the era of occupation, did not belong to Bessarabia and consisted of 13 of its own counties.
The first thing that looks different here after Moldova is the people. Completely different faces and mood: no trace remains of the Moldovan relaxed sloppiness. The faces of people here are firm, concentrated, I would even say gloomy. Expressing not even the dramatic resentment characteristic of the Slavs towards everyone and everything from the president to the ex-husband, but a stoic readiness for impending disaster.
However, I would not say that people here are angry and unfriendly. In my impressions, there is more everyday rudeness in Moldova. I spoke to passers-by here a little, but where I spoke, they usually listened attentively and explained in detail. It’s just that people here seem to be in tense anticipation - well, something like when you’ve been sitting in line for more than an hour and don’t know whether they’ll give you a vital document or not. Pridnestrovians have been living in this queue for 20 years.
But they still live, not survive. More precisely, they “survive” in the same sense of the word that they mean in our outback - the republic, to put it mildly, is not rich. According to statistics, the GDP per capita in Moldova and the PMR is approximately the same, but I asked about the real situation on both sides of the Dniester. As I understand it, Chisinau is significantly richer than Transnistria, Pridnestrovians even go there to work, but the outback in Moldova is poorer than the outback of the PMR. At the same time, the presence of a “steady hand” and humanitarian aid from Russia is reflected - for example, pensions in Transnistria are about one and a half times higher than in Moldova, but still miserable even by the standards of the Russian Federation ($80 and $120, respectively). But to be honest, I cannot confirm the widespread assertion that in Transnistria the roads are significantly better than in Moldova - in my opinion it’s about the same.
At the same time, the people here, it seemed to me, are less patriarchal and more urban compared to the Moldovans. An indicator is that in Moldova I almost never saw informals, but in the PMR there are classic nefers in leather jackets, and shuttlers, and hipsters, and girls with blue hair. The girls in Transnistria are beautiful (multinationality affects them), well-groomed, and often very stylishly dressed.
9. Rybnitsa schoolchildren at a cleanup event.
Here are schoolchildren in Bendery collecting donations to help orphans. The promotion is quite funny - you donate money to them, they give you a “palm” made of colored paper with one adhesive side, and you stick it on the sheet as a sign of involvement. On the day of my arrival, two such groups were walking around Bendery, and you had to see with what seriousness and concern they approached the matter.
In general, I liked and remembered the Pridnestrovian youth. Many high school students here have unexpectedly bright faces, almost like in Soviet cinema. At the same time, gopniks and other aggressive bipedal fauna have a larger population here than in Moldova, but this is already a problem for the entire East Slavic world.
Schoolchildren on an excursion to the Bendery Fortress:
Accordion player in Tiraspol. Let the southern appearance of many Transnistrians not be surprising: the largest minority of Transnistria is the Bulgarians (2% of the population), living mainly in Parkany - the largest village in the PMR (10.5 thousand inhabitants), through which Bendery and Tiraspol merged (even the route of the intercity trolleybus No. 19 runs mainly along Parcani). Bulgarians have citizenship of Bulgaria, that is, the European Union, and generally keep to themselves. It seemed to me that other Pridnestrovians envy them.
Another interesting point: before the trip, I was sure that in Moldova it is rare to see a policeman, but in the PMR there is a cop on every corner. In the end, it turned out to be the opposite: in Moldovan cities there are a lot of cops even after Russia and Kazakhstan (and in addition there are very strict laws), but in the PMR I only saw policemen briefly a couple of times, and three times a car drove by with the sign “Police”. I don’t even remember traffic cops on the roads. And in principle, I didn’t even really see what uniform the PMR policemen had. But there are really a lot of people in the Unrecognized Country - the military, especially in Bendery:
In general, before the trip, I imagined Transnistria as a light dictatorship, like Belarus or Kazakhstan, with a lifelong Leader of the Nation and an opposition within the limits of statistical error. However, Igor Smirnov, who ruled the country for 20 years and once led the struggle for independence, recently lost the elections democratically: Yevgeny Shevchuk won, gaining 38% and 75% of the votes, respectively, in two rounds, and this happened without the post-election squabbles and Maidan protesters traditional for the post-Soviet space . Smirnov was described to me something like this: “He did a lot for the country, you don’t have to agree with those who criticize him... but in the last 8-10 years he became bronzed and started stealing” - now that’s it above typical for the former USSR.
The second aspect that you immediately notice here after Moldova is... but you didn’t guess right. This is the industry:
This division into agrarian-nationalist and industrial-pro-Soviet parts exists in many post-Soviet countries. The most famous example is Ukraine; Kazakhstan is a little less noticeable in this sense. But in its purest form this division was precisely in the Moldavian SSR. Firstly, the presence of a clear border - the Dniester; secondly, if in Eastern Ukraine there are black soils and agro-industrial complex, and in Western Ukraine there are still several large factories, and Southern Kazakhstan is not inferior to Northern Kazakhstan in industrialization, in Moldova west of the Dniester there is almost no large heavy industry, and to the east there is simply not enough space for agriculture . The industrial center of the PMR is Rybnitsa, where its own metallurgical plant is located; There are powerful factories in Tiraspol (say, Elektromash, whose director was Smirnov), and in Bendery, as well as a state district power station in Dnestrovsk and a hydroelectric power station in Dubossary.... Although only 12% of the area and population of the Moldavian SSR remained behind the PMR, here half of its industry is concentrated, including 2/3 of the electric power industry. In addition, unlike Moldova, the PMR receives gas from Russia at preferential prices (and often on credit, and Moldova again pays off the debts), and for a long time the independence of Transnistria was guaranteed not only by the Russian army, but also by the opportunity to block the pipe to the Moldovans.
Well, in general, where there is industry, there is nostalgia for the Union, sympathy for Russia as its successor, faith in a “steady hand” and fair distribution of wealth, and where there is peasantry, there is nationalism and small business, incompatible with the Soviet past. It seems to me that in Ukraine, too, the contradictions are not so much civilizational or religious as class ones - the gap between the peasantry and the proletariat.
And only in third place in the order of differences is language. Transnistria is also unique in that essentially the Moldovan language (and not a dilaect of Romanian) has been preserved only here. Firstly, it is still in Cyrillic here (and don’t forget that the Wallachians also used the Cyrillic alphabet until the 1860s), and secondly, if in Moldova many actual Moldavian words were recognized as vernacular and replaced in the literary language by Romanian ones, in Even this did not happen in Transnistria. However, frankly speaking, Moldavian is not in use here. I heard the statement that not a single book in Moldavian has yet been published in the PMR - I cannot judge how true this is.
At the same time, three languages are considered de jure official - Moldavian, Russian and Ukrainian:
In fact, things are approximately the same as in the already mentioned national autonomies of the Russian Federation such as Mordovia or Karelia - the environment here is 90% Russian-speaking, Ukrainian and Moldavian are present mainly in official signs and in the rural outback (explanation for you-know-who - in the Russian Federation there is a difference between republic and republic, and for example in Tatarstan and Bashkiria the situation with languages is completely different).
Another myth about Transnistria is that it is supposedly a “living museum of the USSR.” Well, there really are a couple of “exhibits”:
But in general, no particular socialism, especially in landscapes, was noticed in the PMR. Belarus is much more suitable for the role of the “living USSR”. Let's say there is no less outdoor advertising here than in Moldova, Ukraine or Russia.
The cult of Victory is clearly expressed even in Right Bank Ukraine, even in Volyn (which is already Western Ukraine), so there is no way to resemble “Soviet specifics”:
And there are monuments to victims of repression:
In general, soviet-style is nothing more than a ruse for European backpackers. Perhaps the only attribute is a large number of posters and slogans on the theme of love for the Motherland, and the flag of the Moldavian SSR minus the hammer and sickle:
Something else is much more real - there really was a war here:
23. House of Soviets in Bendery.
Moreover, only the decisive battle took place for Bendery in June 1992, and skirmishes, provocations and shootouts had happened here before, mainly in the Dubossary area. You can read more about the history of the conflict on Wikipedia. I asked people on both sides of the Dniester about what happened here in those years. Here are some rough quotes:
- Moldova, a person of pro-Russian-anti-Romanian views: The Pridnestrovians simply saw what was going on here, the antics of all these nationalists, the course towards unification with Romania, the destruction of factories that were advanced for the Union, such as the Chisinau Computer Plant. And although among those who fought there there were a lot of scumbags, all sorts of ragamuffins who were simply given the opportunity to shoot and handed a machine gun upon presentation of their passport, we respect the Pridnestrovians for defending their independence with arms in hand. And in general, many here share the ideas of Transnistria, but damn it - this is a gangster state! Pirate Republic! It used to get to the point that at the Bendery customs there was one regime, at Dubossary another, at Rybnitsa a third - whatever the local brothers wanted. It's a shame - they discredit ideas that could become popular in Moldova.
- Moldova, a person of more neutral views. What happened in Transnistria is in fact nothing more than a “revolt of the Red Directors”. There are huge factories there, and that’s a lot of money, and the directors understood that the new government would overthrow them(...and destroy factories - my note), and therefore skillfully played the anti-Romanian card, becoming state power from directors.
- Transnistria, patriot. For us, for the first 15 years there was no such question at all - “what happened there.” We all knew what we were fighting for, and only in the last 5 years have some alternative versions begun to appear. This is all nonsense. And it’s also nonsense that it was a national conflict - Moldovans fought on this side, including Russians on that side ( which is confirmed by the lists of the dead - my note )
.
In general, Moldovan residents unanimously agree that Transnistria exists in the interests of local oligarchs, and on both sides of the border they say “our friends live there” (we are talking about ordinary people).
24. Rybnitsa and Rezina, between them the Dniester.
In general, although it all started with a war, now the relations between one and a half states are surprising. Firstly, by the fact that in principle there are relations between them (unlike, for example, Georgia-Abkhazia). If in Azerbaijan they can imprison a foreigner caught visiting Nagorno-Karabakh, Moldovans in Transnistria regularly ride themselves. Pridnestrovians go to Chisinau (which is almost a metropolis for them) to work and go out - it is much more accessible to them than Odessa. In principle, Moldova, in relation to the PMR, has taken the position “no matter what the child amuses himself with...”, “if you want to consider yourself independent, consider it.” I have already written about a one-way border - on the PMR side there is full-fledged border control, on the Moldova side, at most, a reinforced police station. It is not a problem to enter or leave Moldova illegally through the PMR, and in general this border creates more inconvenience for Moldovans than for Pridnestrovians. There are, however, a number of nuances: first, if you entered Moldova through the PMR, you must voluntarily go to the authorities and register (lately, they say, there is an exception for passengers of the Moscow-Chisinau train going through Bendery - Moldovan border guards meet them on the train), if you came to Moldova and want to leave through the PMR to Ukraine, it is better to have both a foreign passport and an internal passport of the Russian Federation or Ukraine with you: Transnistria does not put any stamps, and you end up with Ukrainian border guards with an open Moldavian border, which is fraught with extortion of a bribe. And the option of two passports is bad because if you decide to come to Moldova again, there will be problems at the entry due to the “hanging stamp”. For this reason, I returned from Transnistria to Chisinau and traveled by train through the north.
But with currencies, the separation is complete: in Moldova - lei, in Transnistria - their own special rubles - “suvoriki” with Suvorov and inscriptions in three languages (and the Ukrainian ones had errors in a couple of editions). Changing lei in the PMR is not a problem, but it makes no sense to travel to Moldova with the Transnistrian ruble.
25. On the Moldovan coast. View from Transnistria.
Although from time to time all sorts of provocations occur between the two banks of the Dniester - either they jam each other’s cellular communications, or they try to establish a transport blockade, or vice versa - in 1999-2000, while the Chisinau airport was under reconstruction, its flights were received and sent by Tiraspol. In general, the posts of Russian peacekeepers are still standing:
And the Pridnestrovians do not regret separating from Moldova. On both sides of the Dniester they regret those killed in that war, the culprit of which is called Mircea Snegur, “an absolutely irresponsible ruler.” I was surprised that General Lebed had a positive attitude even in Moldova - “this man stopped the bloodshed.” Yes, he stopped it, threatening to fire a volley from Grads at Chisinau, essentially taking the PMR from Moldova by force, but here everything is somewhat more complicated: Transnistria, although small, it so happened that most of the Soviet military equipment was on its territory: so, Even now Moldova does not have a single tank, nor did they have them then. If the war had flared up, it could have dragged on for years and claimed tens of thousands of lives, as in Chechnya or Tajikistan. And gratitude to Lebed for the defeat inflicted in this vein is quite humanistic. The Japanese, however, are also grateful to the United States for Hiroshima, but Lebed never fired, but only threatened.
But I somehow cannot confirm the assertion that Pridnestrovians live only in fear and hatred of Romania, which they have made a national bogeyman here. In my opinion, Romanianization is much more feared in Moldova itself, but Pridnestrovians do not really remember Romania in everyday life; it does not play any role in their lives. Although, of course, it is surprising to what extent in the 1990s people were afraid of this prospect - Transnistria, the Gagauz, and most of the Moldovans themselves.
Now, especially in the news, the role of foreign policy should not be overestimated. Both in Moldova and in the PMR, such problems as: there is no work, pensions are below the subsistence level, bureaucrats are stealing, the housing is too heavy, prices are rising, trains are being cancelled, etc.
Although the political life of the unrecognized state has a number of its own curiosities. Since many Pridnestrovians are citizens of Russia, that is, voters, familiar logos and names are present here:
Ukraine, apparently out of solidarity with Moldova, is not so impudent (or maybe its parties are simply not allowed here), although I do not exclude that you can contact the “Party of Regions” or “Batkovshchina” here:
Although what blew my mind most of all was this: the embassy of Abkhazia and South Ossetia! They even have a “second CIS” - the Commonwealth of Unrecognized States. And judging by other people’s photographs, Transnistria is most of all a state among them.
There is even a holding company here - “Sheriff”, which all travelers without saying a word mention in the context of “Sheriff’s security chases photographers.” In the republic he owns most of the supermarkets, gas stations, oil depots and car services, his own TV channel, all cellular communications and the Internet in Transnistria, as well as a giant sports complex on the outskirts of Tiraspol and, since 2006, the Quint cognac factory, and 12 thousand people work in all of this - 2.5% of the total population of the country. I have never been inside these supermarkets, but in general they say that in Moldova the shops and catering are much better, if only because of greater competition.
At the same time, Sheriff's subsidiary IDC, a monopolist on cellular communications in Transnistria, does not use the GSM format. What does it mean? Well, for example, my mobile phone with a Moldovan SIM card did not receive reception in Tiraspol. The only thing that saves the situation a little is that Transnistria is very narrow, and in most of it the phone picks up signals from Moldova and Ukraine.
Well, at the end of the post - about the main square of Tiraspol. The main street or square of the capital is almost always the façade of the state, and in Tiraspol it is very revealing. The huge square (approximately 700x400 meters, including public gardens!) faces directly onto the banks of the Dniester, and bears the name of Suvorov:
Alexander Suvorov founded Tiraspol as the Middle Fortress of the Dniester Line; Suvorov took Izmail, after which Transnistria became part of Russia. And a truly spectacular equestrian monument to him was erected back in 1979 and immediately became a symbol of Tiraspol. In general, Suvorov here plays almost the same role as Stephen the Great in Moldova - of course, there are not monuments to him in every city, and Suvorov Street is not always central, but he is here on all banknotes. Yes, and objectively - who else?
Nearby is the Palace of Children and Youth Creativity (the edge is visible) and a characteristic poster. One of the things that I remember about Tiraspol is ornamental cabbage. I, of course, have seen it before, but never before in such quantities. The cabbage beds are very colorful, but they smell like ordinary cabbage from the kitchen, and that’s why I also remember Tiraspol for its cabbage smell.
Here is the building of the Government and the Supreme Council (in appearance, from the 1980s), in front of which Lenin is more alive than anyone else (however, after Russia, Belarus and Eastern Ukraine, this should not surprise anyone):
On the contrary, closer to the banks of the Dniester, there is a military memorial:
At the wall - Defender of Transnistria and an Afghan who looks like an American action hero:
On the “Transnistrian” monument there are the names of 489 people who died in battles on this side (Moldova lost about the same number), behind the door is a museum, where I no longer went, since I was in the museum in Bendery. Among the names, I especially note these:
Next is the Great Patriotic War memorial: they fought for the Dniester, of course, not in the same way as for the Dnieper, but very cruelly, and on the bridgeheads of the right bank there are now their own huge memorials (I never saw any of them) - for example,
