“The desire to live in one state”: why the topic of joining Russia was raised in Pridnestrovie

Pridnestrovie is committed to the course of independence and joining Russia.

This was stated in an interview with journalists by Foreign Minister of the unrecognized republic Vitaly Ignatiev.

“The foreign policy vector of Pridnestrovie remains unchanged - it is independence and subsequent free accession to the Russian Federation, which was approved at the 2006 referendum (according to its results, almost all residents of the republic supported independence and the idea of ​​​​joining the Russian Federation. -

),” Ignatiev is quoted by TASS.

Press Secretary of the President of Russia Dmitry Peskov said that he had seen media reports about the plans of Pridnestrovie, but did not know what processes they were connected with.

In a conversation with RT, Vladimir Dzhabarov, First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs, noted that the people of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (PMR) have the right to decide their own fate.

“This is an internal affair of the citizens of Pridnestrovie.

So far, as you know, we have the formula "5 + 2".

But she crashes.

Moreover, Moldova is doing everything possible to torpedo normalization (of the situation. -

),” the senator said.

Recall that the “5 + 2” formula provides for negotiations consisting of representatives of the Russian Federation, Moldova, PMR, OSCE, Ukraine and observers from the US and the EU in order to peacefully resolve the Transnistrian conflict. 

From Dzhabarov's point of view, at present it makes sense to wait for a more concrete official expression of the PMR's position, for example, in the form of a new referendum.

At the same time, a member of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs, Dmitry Belik, sees the situation with the independence and accession of Pridnestrovie to Russia somewhat differently.

In a commentary to RIA Novosti, the deputy stressed that the desire of the PMR to become part of Russia must be taken seriously.

According to Belik, this is not a question of the distant future, but "a direction in the short term."

“So the proposal of Pridnestrovie to join Russia is not some kind of boundless and distant future, rather it is a direction in the near future.

And since Russian-speaking people who are close to us in spirit live there, we must consider this proposal seriously, ”said Belik.

"Protection within Russia"

As RANEPA professor, associate professor of Moscow State University Natalya Kharitonova noted in a conversation with RT, the situation in the region is also destabilized by the policy of Moldova, the current round of the Ukrainian crisis, as well as numerous systemic attempts by Western countries to draw Moldova into a conflict with Russia.

Recall that the situation in Pridnestrovie seriously aggravated this spring.

There were several explosions and terrorist attacks in the republic.

The PMR authorities accused Chisinau and Kyiv of organizing sabotage.

At the same time, Tiraspol called on Moldova and Ukraine to "keep restraint."

• The consequences of shelling from a grenade launcher the building of the Ministry of State Security of Pridnestrovie

• AP

• © Ministry of Internal Affairs of Transnistria

Nevertheless, the situation around Transnistria did not become more stable.

In early June, Moldovan Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilitsa announced "preliminary discussions" on arms supplies to Chisinau from European countries.

Tiraspol regarded contacts with the West on arms issues as a threat.

“Why do you need to modernize the army, no one threatens you.

Or are you hatching aggressive plans?

This, of course, is a factor that threatens stability, peace and security,” Ignatiev said during a press conference on July 22, addressing the Moldovan authorities. 

According to the head of the PMR Foreign Ministry, in such circumstances, the role of the Russian military personnel stationed in the republic "acquires even greater importance." 

Currently, about 400 servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces are serving in Transnistria as part of the Operational Group of Russian Forces in Transnistria (OGRF).

They guard large ammunition depots in the village of Kolbasna and are responsible for maintaining security, along with their Transnistrian and Moldovan counterparts, as well as ten observers from Ukraine.

In Tiraspol, it was repeatedly emphasized that Russian troops are the guarantor of the inviolability of the republic, which survived an armed conflict with the Moldovan security forces 30 years ago.

However, the leadership of Moldova opposes the further deployment of the Russian contingent.

Recall that the peacekeeping mission of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation officially began after the adoption on July 21, 1992 of the agreement "On the principles of the peaceful settlement of the armed conflict in the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova", concluded between Moscow and Chisinau.

Despite the fact that the conflict remains unresolved, the Moldovan leadership claims that the presence of Russian troops on the territory of the PMR allegedly has no legal basis.

On July 21, on the anniversary of the conclusion of the agreement “On the principles of a peaceful settlement,” Moldovan President Maia Sandu, in an interview with TVR, said that the document was allegedly signed under pressure from the Russian Federation.

• Peacekeeping post of Russian military personnel in Transnistria

• RIA News

• © Vadim Savitsky

“This agreement was signed under the threat of the 14th army (it was in the PMR during the conflict, but adhered to neutrality. -

), which, of course, did not have a peaceful purpose.

On the contrary," TASS quotes Maia Sandu.

From her point of view, it is the presence of the OGRF that impedes the peaceful resolution of the conflict.

Also, Sandu believes, Moscow should not support the "regime in Tiraspol."

Guided by such reasoning, the Moldovan authorities have recently begun to obstruct the rotation of Russian forces in the PMR.

Moscow is convinced that the Transnistrian conflict has not been overcome and the presence of the OGRF on the territory of the PMR is necessary.

On July 21, speaking at a round table, Alexander Rakitin, First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Defense and Security, said that “the parties see their future differently” and the peacekeeping contingent cannot be replaced “by any alternative formats.”

Moreover, as the senator noted, “in the current geopolitical conditions, overseas curators are interested in escalating this conflict and creating additional centers of military-political instability in this region.”

In a RT commentary, political scientist Dmitry Ermolaev called the claims of the Moldovan side to the Russian contingent completely unfounded.

According to him, the OGRF is the most important tool for resolving the conflict.

“In Pridnestrovie, the main thing is stability and peace.

For 30 years, stability and peace have been ensured by the Russian “blue helmets”.

I hope that Chisinau's provocative statements still do not reflect real intentions and are made for domestic consumption," Yermolaev added.

Kyiv hawks

Experts believe that the situation around the PMR continues to degrade.

In addition to calls to withdraw the OGRF, the situation is aggravated by the active Euro-Atlantic aspirations of Chisinau, as well as the issue of merging Moldova with Romania that constantly appears on the agenda.

In addition to the position of Chisinau, analysts are also concerned about the policy of the Kyiv hawks.

In particular, the deputy of the Verkhovna Rada from the European Solidarity faction (former Petro Poroshenko Bloc) Aleksey Goncharenko switched to open threats using obscene language.

“You sit there quietly while we have other things to do, otherwise your accession will end very quickly.

And it will end so that you will erect a monument to Stepan Andreevich (Bandera. -

) in Tiraspol, ”Goncharenko commented in his Telegram channel on Ignatiev’s desire for the PMR to become part of the Russian Federation.

Natalya Kharitonova believes that Pridnestrovie is indeed under the threat of an armed attack.

Oleg Nemensky, an expert from the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies, agrees with this point of view.

“The situation can blow up both Ukraine and Romania with the hands of Chisinau.

For this, only sanctions from Washington and Brussels are needed, ”Nemensky explained.

According to him, Pridnestrovie is the same organic part of the Russian world and Russian civilization as the people's republics of Donbass.

In his opinion, the great merit of the inhabitants of the PMR is their loyalty to the course of joining Russia, despite extremely unfavorable external factors.