After the collapse of the vast country that occupied the sixth of the land, many independent states were formed, which immediately faced many difficulties. And some of the world even refuses to recognize. Such is the Transnistrian Moldavian Republic. It is inhabited by courageous people who not only challenged the entire "civilized" humanity, but also withstood the response pressure. However, the history of this not universally recognized state is very interesting. Its appearance on the world map is caused not only by the will of the population, but also by previous events. It so happened that this territory from the eighteenth century descended into the Russian Empire. But let's plunge into the past a little deeper.
How the territory was formed
The history of the Transdniestrian Moldavian Republic is not very different from that of neighboring lands. In ancient times, these places were sparsely populated. Mostly Slavic and Turkic tribes lived here. At one time, the territory was part of Kievan Rus, then it was included in the Principality of Galicia-Volyn. In the XIV century, the land passed into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Since there were few residents, the transition from one jurisdiction to another did not particularly affect people. Only in the eighteenth century, after these places became part of the Russian Empire, changes began to occur. Caring for the protection of borders, the state encouraged the migration of citizens to these places. The population has become multinational. Among its inhabitants there were Bulgarians and Russians, Germans and Greeks, and, of course, Moldovans. After the revolution, the Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was formed on this territory. She was part of the Ukrainian SSR. And only in 1939, when Romania was forced to return part of the previously occupied territories to the union, the Moldavian SSR was formed, which included these lands. To understand the reasons why the population living in this territory did not want to remain part of the new Moldova, it is important to know its history.
Formation of an industrial complex
After the formation of the MSSR, the authorities began to send specialists from the Union republics here. Mostly rebuilt the current territory of the Ukrainians and Russians. For political reasons, it was here that the main industrial enterprises were created. By the time of its formation in its current form, the Transnistrian Moldavian Republic provided 40% of the total GDP, generated 90% of the electricity. In addition, the 14th Union Army was based here, of course, the corresponding infrastructure was created. It turns out that the current Transnistrian Moldavian Republic has concentrated on its territory almost the entire industrial potential of the country that formed after the collapse of the USSR.
The official, but not recognized formation of a new state
The incident happened when our previously huge country fell into fifteen parts. That is, this division was recognized by the UN, but not by residents. Since Moldova was historically formed from two very different territories, its population was divided into “camps”. The center considered the territory whole. Only in Transnistria were of a different opinion. The MSSR Parliament adopted the “Declaration of Independence”, which repealed the law on the formation of the republic within the Union. But the same act, as it were, freed the territory of Transnistria from state ties with the new country, since it was included in the composition of the MSSR by a decision repealed by its parliament. In Tiraspol, they were not at a loss and proclaimed PMR on November 5, 1991 (the full name is the Transnistrian Moldavian Republic), which in their understanding was historically quite logical.
Administrative - territorial division
The Republic of PMR is unitary and consists of seven administrative units. They include five districts and two cities subordinate to the republic. These are Bender and Tiraspol. The Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (photo above) has its own state symbols. The flag is a red cloth with a green stripe in the middle. In the corner there are crossed sickle and hammer. Eight cities and towns, one hundred forty-three villages and four railway stations are located on this territory. Some settlements are under the administration of Moldova. In 2011, the population exceeded five hundred thousand people of thirty-five nationalities. Most of the people (40%) consider themselves Moldovans, Ukrainians - 26%, Russians - 24%. The PMR Government uses three state languages that are understood by representatives of major nationalities. The main religion is Christianity, although other groups of believers work.
Geographical position
The Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (a map of it is available in the article) is a fairly narrow strip of land, sandwiched between Moldova and Ukraine. She has no access to the sea. The area of this country is 4163 square kilometers. For reference: this is a tenth of the former MSSR.
The PMR President works in Tiraspol, the capital of the country. All government structures are located there. The terrain here is flat, sometimes there are beams. Land is represented mainly by chernozem. The climate here is temperate continental, there is not enough rainfall, but this does not harm agriculture, since a large river, the Dniester, flows through the territory. In addition, the republic also has minerals. PMR develops glass sands, gravel deposits and building limestones. There is ceramic clay. In the forests that are located on the slopes of the Dniester, there are wild boar, roe deer, partridge, hare, otter, fox, and ermine. Rivers supply fish, and sturgeon eat in reservoirs.
Conflict with Moldova
The self-proclaimed state was not recognized as the main part of the former MSSR, which, according to the UN definition, was its successor. They tried to resolve the conflict for a long time. The Moldovan leadership created a peace plan, in accordance with which the PMR was to form an “asymmetric federation” with it. In fact, the document rejected the independence of the territory, which was supposed to formally become part of Moldova, albeit with broad powers. Tiraspol rejected the proposal, as it was based on the principle of demilitarization, which is completely unacceptable to the population. The threat of a serious armed conflict arose.
Currently, peacekeepers represented by Russian, Moldavian and local military maintain security here. Despite ongoing negotiations under the auspices of the OSCE, it has not been possible to reduce the tension of the conflict. The last surge was in the spring of 2014, when the local population turned to the President of Russia with a request to resolve the issue of accession of the PMR to the Russian Federation. This event occurred after the Crimean spring. The enthusiastic people felt that they too would have a chance to unite with their historical Motherland. Back in 2006, ninety-seven percent of citizens spoke out not only for independence from Moldova, but also for further accession to the Russian Federation. At the same time, seventy-eight percent of voters voted. But the referendum "civilized community" recognized undemocratic.
President of the PMR
The republic has its own Constitution, which determines the order and form of its existence. According to the basic law, the president of the PMR is elected by direct vote. Elections are held every five years. There are certain restrictions that apply to candidates. Only a citizen of the republic who has reached thirty-five years of age can apply for this position, more than ten of whom live in this country. Now the president of Transdniestria is Evgeny Shevchuk. He has a predecessor who has worked in this post for twenty years. This is Igor Nikolayevich Smirnov, who suffered a lot of difficulties until life in the country improved. The last presidential election was held in 2011.
Economy
Despite the fact that large industrial enterprises are located in the republic, they do not give any particular income. Among the problems called primarily the status of the state. It is not recognized as an obstacle to establishing economic ties and participating in large projects. Products of enterprises are sold in Ukraine and Russia. The latter provides PMR with ongoing support. So, many sources point to the continuously growing debt of the unrecognized state for gas (400 percent of GDP). Currency PMR - Transnistrian ruble. It began to be released since 2005. Banknotes in nominal value of 1, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 200 and 500 rubles are in circulation. There are coins of the Transnistrian Moldavian Republic, namely: 5, 10, 25 and 50 kopecks. The banking system, as in other countries, is two-tier. The first is a national institution, the second is commercial. The currency of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic is quoted only on its territory. This is due to the same unrecognized status of the state.
Tourist potential
The republic is trying to attract investors. A special program has been developed for this. This policy is facilitated by the convenient location and developed transport structure of the state. In addition, there are a number of settlements with a rich history. The main one is Kamenka, where many architectural monuments are located. Among them: churches, wine terraces and cellars. Residents are happy to show tourists the estate of Field Marshal P.H. Wittgenstein, some of which has been preserved on the territory of the city. In the PMR (photo) there is a reserve - "Yagorlyk". The possibilities of developing green tourism in the republic are currently being considered, for which there is sufficient potential. Visitors are recommended to definitely see the Church of the Rev. Paraskeva Srpska, which is located in the village of Valya-Adynke, the Bendery Fortress museum complex. Residents are rightly proud of the Kolkotovaya Balka paleontological complex, which is a natural monument of world significance.
Social sphere
The PMR Government pays close attention to issues of education and health. Nine-year education is compulsory. In total, one hundred eighty-four schools operate in the territory of the republic (six are private). At the same time, in thirty-three, teaching is conducted in Moldovan, three in Ukrainian, and the rest in Russian. There are three state universities in the PMR, in addition, there are branches of Russian and Ukrainian higher educational institutions. For example, eleven thousand students study at a university (main university). Young people can get higher education in Russia, where their certificate is recognized. Health care is based on public funding. According to statistics, there are one hundred and twenty health workers and one hundred beds for every ten thousand people. There are service centers for certain categories of citizens, including women in labor and women with children, invalids of the Second World War.
Trade
The state exports its own products and raw materials. The latter includes cement, gravel, sand. Iron and steel products, mechanical engineering, electricity and textiles are also exported. Most of the goods are consumed by the Russian Federation and Ukraine. But there are partners from far abroad. These are Syria and Turkey, Serbia and Romania, in total about a hundred countries. It imports PMR natural gas, raw materials for metallurgy, and oil processing products. The republic does not produce enough components for mechanical engineering, they also have to be imported.
In addition, part of the food is imported from abroad (mainly meat products). The main suppliers include enterprises of the Russian Federation and Kazakhstan, Moldova and Germany, Ukraine and Italy. The government is worried that imports far exceed exports from the country. This is especially true of food. A program is being developed to develop its own capacities; natural conditions favor this.
