How did a narrow strip of land between the River
Dniester and the border between Moldova and Ukraine become a global flashpoint?
How do you visit a country that doesn’t exist?
All the answers to your questions can be found in the land known as Transnistria.
The region is officially part of Moldova, and those who visit the country can tour
the place and visit its capital Tiraspol. But if you ask the people living there,
they’re not part of Moldova. They’re their own country, and they want global recognition. This
conflict goes back decades and doesn’t seem to be any closer to being resolved. It even
turned from a diplomatic squabble to a military conflict at one point - and may be inspiring other
independence movements in the region and beyond. But why is this region such a trouble spot?
Some might say it started with the Cold War - but it goes back much further.
The land that would become Transnistria was never far from war, as it was inhabited by Thracian and
Scythian tribes in ancient history. The region was found in old texts as early as Roman times and
eventually colonized by them. But when the empire receded and eventually fell,
the region would once again be a site of conflict. It would be conquered by the Goths,
and later ravaged by Attila the Hun. The Goths would eventually occupy the region again - but
even then the political situation wouldn’t be smooth, as it would be divided between two tribes.
Things would only get more in flux from there.
The region was a frequent crossroads for various tribes, including the South Slavs
and Turkic Nomads who settled in the region. It became home to a host of languages and cultures
and was dominated by the Turkic Cuman tribe in the early second millennium. But this was the age of
empires, and independent regions would rarely stay so forever. The Ottoman Empire made inroads into
the region, bringing most of modern-day Moldova into its sphere - but the region that would
become Transnistria would become part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania instead in the 15th century.
But centuries of war and conflict were only beginning.
Transnistria was at the crossroads of multiple powers, and it would see itself
overrun multiple times. The Byzantine empire built a massive fortress on its coast. The
Republic of Genoa controlled it in the 14th century, only for the Turkish army to invade.
The new city founded by those who escaped the conquest would one day become Transnistria’s
capital city - Tiraspol. Sometimes the region was divided between multiple powers. Sometimes
a bigger power would merge with the existing one, like the Polish-Lithuanian Confederacy.
But as the modern era neared, an even bigger power was emerging.
The region was diverse in the late 1700s, with a population of Romanians, Ukrainians, Poles,
nomadic Tatars, and Russians. But it would be that last group that was most
significant because the Russian empire was growing - and it was interested in
absorbing all the territory that could be considered in its sphere. To avoid conflict,
the land was partitioned - the southern part was given to the Russian empire in 1792,
and the northern part a year later in the Second Partition of Poland. The Russians
quickly moved to boost the area’s population, bringing in large numbers of settlers.
They renamed part of the area “New Moldovia”,
and the region’s complex history was only going to get stranger.
Russia’s government wanted to turn the region into a new hub, and they distributed tax-free land
among Moldovian peasants. Powerful families became land barons, new villages were founded en-masse,
and the region’s new status as a Russian border community meant economic boom times - but all
good things come to an end. Russia soon expanded its territory again, the borders shifted, and
the land that would be Transnistria became just another Russian region of no special importance.
The region entered a new normal - but it wouldn’t be long before history found it again.
By the turn of the 20th century, it was estimated there were more than a million people in the
region. The heavy Romanian population was growing restless under Russian rule,
and around the time of the first world war, the Bessarabian national movement
formed. They asked for the region to be absorbed into Greater Romania - but Romania
ignored their request to avoid war with Russia. This was also around the time
the Russian empire fell and was replaced with the Soviet Union - and the communist
government had a different perspective on independence movements than the Czars.
The path to Transnistrian independence was about to take another turn.
Grigore Kotovski, the head of the Bessarabian movement, had risen to power within the Soviet
government, and he proposed an autonomous Communist region that would give the citizens
of Transnistria more independence. But it wouldn’t be a smooth path - a massive workers’ uprising in
1927 led the Soviet government to deploy troops in Tiraspol to put down the riots,
resulting in four thousand deaths. The new government didn’t seem to be any more
concerned with the people’s demands than the last one - and even suppressed reports
of the fighting in the press. Things went from bad to worse under Stalin,
as strict conformity was imposed and the ethnic traditions of the Romanian population were
suppressed. Many fled to Romania, and those who stayed found themselves under a brutal regime.
And World War II was just around the corner.
In 1940, the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic was formed - but it wouldn’t last
long. Only a year later, Axis forces invaded Bessaranoa and quickly took over the region.
This was when it would be renamed Transnistria, and the Romanian authorities quickly reversed
the changes made by the Soviets. Churches were reopened, schools began to re-emphasize
the ethnic traditions of the region, and theaters and schools returned to their
previous programming. Caught between the Soviet army and the Nazi regime,
the citizens faced an uncertain future - and were largely divided among ethnic lines once again.
By the end of the war, their fortunes would change yet again.
The Soviet Army retook the region in 1944 as the Axis forces were driven out - and
the Romanian government with them. Stalin wasted no time instituting harsh reprisals against the
local Romanians, with thousands being deported to gulags and the Moldavian SSR being subjected
to even harsher measures of Russification. While Moldavia as a whole was oppressed by the Soviets,
Transnistria’s economy grew. It became a center of industry during the Soviet era,
had a military base placed there, and dominated the economy of Moldavia for decades.
But the world would soon change once again - and
Transnistria would encounter its most troubled times in decades.
A new leader took over the Soviet Union in the 1980s, and much of the world breathed a sigh
of relief. Mikhail Gorbachev was a much less confrontational figure than his predecessors,
and his policies of perestroika and glasnost led to less tension with the rest of the world
and a more liberal political climate in the Soviet Union. But within enclaves like Transnistria,
it led to old conflicts rising again. Transnistria’s population
was firmly split - almost forty percent Moldavian, just over a quarter Ukrainian,
and a quarter Russian with small groups of ethnic minorities mixed in. This led
to conflicts over language and culture without the Soviets imposing a one-size-fits-all policy.
And soon, that simmering tension would explode.
An informal Congress was formed, and they declared themselves an independent nation.
They hoped Gorbachev’s tolerance would lead him to recognize their independence - but instead,
he declared it null and void. As the Soviet Union collapsed, Moldova declared independence and laid
claim to the region. They soon launched a military assault on the region to try to
reunite it with Moldova - and Russia responded in kind. While the Soviet Union was no more,
Russia under President Boris Yeltsin had no intention of losing any more territory. The new
Moldovan army was overwhelmed by the Russians, and the war was over in only months with a cease-fire.
And out of that cease-fire would come an unusual status quo.
A three-party Joint Control Commission would take over security and establish
the region as a demilitarized zone on both sides of the river. Russia, Moldova,
and the local government of Transnistria would work together to establish policy,
and Transnistria would be allowed to govern itself as a semi-autonomous republic. But it
would be internationally recognized as part of Moldova - which didn’t really satisfy anyone
involved. Many Moldovans want what they see as their territory, many Russians believe it
belongs to them, and many Transnistrians believe they deserve full independence.
But for now, an odd limbo awaits the pseudo-nation.
What is life like in Transnistria now? The region has its own government, parliament,
and military. It’s allowed to maintain its own currency and police force,
and any mail that comes out of there will be labeled as from Transnistria. It even
has its own national anthem and flag - everything you would expect a country to
have. It just lacks one thing - recognition as a country from the rest of the world, which is
determined to maintain the fragile peace that the Joint Commission worked out for the region.
But some people want that to change.
No country on Earth recognizes Transnistria as a country, mostly to avoid upsetting the balance and
potentially angering world powers. But three other entities in the same boat do - and they
all have a lot in common. Abkhazia, a region recognized as part of Georgia. South Ossetia,
another region in Georgia seeking independence. Artsakh, a breakaway region of Azerbaijan. All
four of these entities were once part of the Soviet Union, and wound up belonging to other
countries after the fall of the empire. All seek independence - but Abkhazia and
South Ossetia are only recognized by a few countries, and Transnistria and Artsakh by
none. So they formed their own alliance, the Community for Democracy and Rights of Nations.
But not everyone in Transnistria wants independence.
While some ethnic Moldovans do want the region to be part of Moldova, others are hoping to
be part of their much bigger neighbors. The economic climate in Transnistria isn’t great,
and many older citizens believe their fortunes will be better under Russia’s social safety net.
Young people also see more job opportunities and hope for their future in the larger power. But
Russia doesn’t seem interested, and neither Russia nor Romania are making any noises
towards breaking the three-decade-old cease-fire that led to the status quo.
And for now, Transnistria remains an odd curiosity in world
politics - but one that’s open to visitors.
So what is it like to visit a country that doesn’t exist? For one thing, don’t expect
all the comforts of other countries. The region doesn’t have its own international airport,
so unless you’re chartering a small plane, you’ll probably be flying into
Moldova or Ukraine. From there, you’ll be taking a journey by bus or train,
and make sure to have your paperwork in order - you’ll probably be encountering
quite a few border checkpoints. You can also take an organized tour, but then you’re at the
mercy of the company and you have to hope they have everything in order with the local guards!
And once you’re in, be careful.
You’re dealing with three different security forces and they all have military interests in
the region. One wrong turn could lead you into a checkpoint staffed with unfriendly military
guards. Make sure not to talk about politics - the region is still tense and the wrong comment
could arouse ire. And possibly the most important point is...to not use the word Transnistria! It’s
an old Romanian term that basically none of the residents use, and most refer to it as
Pridestrovie instead. Using the other term is the surest way to mark yourself as an outsider.
But once you’re inside, it can be an interesting place.
Transnistria doesn’t have much of a tourism scene, but it’s known for its open-air markets
where hungry tourists can eat their fill of local Russian delicacies. The area is
also known for its brandy and cognac, but make sure to bring cash and be ready to
exchange it at the currency exchange - foreign credit cards and checks aren’t
accepted. Keep your eyes open and your wits about you, and a country that doesn’t exist
can be an unexpected trip into a world few people outside of the region have ever seen.
For more on the era that helped create the region, check out “How Did the Cold War Happen?”
or watch “Real Reason Russia Wants to Expand” for more on the region’s complex politics.