The emergence and development of armed conflict in the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova. "Special opinion
The new holiday of the unrecognized Transnistrian Moldovan Republic, which it celebrated over the weekend - Peacemaker Day - gave rise to renewed talk about the presence of Russian troops in Moldova. Residents of Transnistria perceive Russian soldiers as protectors and saviors. For the rest of Moldova, they are strangers, preventing the country from becoming united and someday joining the European Union.
Russians don't give up
At the checkpoint, which is guarded by Russian soldiers in helmets with large letters “MS” - “peacekeeping forces” - an old Volkswagen stops. The car is surrounded by peacekeepers, and the commander asks to show documents.
The driver points, and the passenger begins to be indignant - they say that you are distracting him from important matters, and in general he does not have any documents, because he went to a neighboring city. But the peacekeepers are calm - the officer asks everyone to get out of the car and open the trunk. “As much as possible, it’s the same thing every time, let’s go already,” the passenger continues to be indignant.
“Usually those who are hiding something are so indignant. One of the signs is that they are nervous,” comments Russian Army Lieutenant Colonel Igor Vlasov, who is observing the inspection.
Finally the peacekeeper finds explosives under the front seat. "On your knees! Post for battle!" - he commands.
Violators fall to their knees in front of the car. The peacekeepers scatter around the checkpoint and take the violators at gunpoint.
“Unfortunately, we can’t do anything more,” laments Lieutenant Colonel Vlasov. “Now we must report the incident to the operational duty officer of the Joint Military Command of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces.”
In fact, we are at the training of the peacekeeping forces of Transnistria. This year alone, about 40 incidents occurred at the posts, including a tragic one, when on January 1, a Russian peacekeeper shot and killed a drunken intruder.
The second activity that peacekeepers practice is an attack on a checkpoint of “illegal armed groups.”
Guys in civilian clothes appear from the side of Moldova. They fire at the checkpoint, and the peacekeepers hide behind concrete blocks. Someone from the other side shouts: "Russians, give up!" The Russians don't give up.
Reformat peacekeepers
Twenty years ago, it was Russian troops who stopped the fighting that engulfed the small republic. At the end of the 80s, Moldova did not remain aloof from the “parade of sovereignties” that took place throughout the Soviet Union. Several Russian-speaking regions in the east of the republic, which until 1940 were part of the USSR (the rest of Moldova belonged to Romania), declared independence. According to Tiraspol's plan, in contrast to the "pro-Romanian" Chisinau, Transnistria was supposed to remain something like a true Moldavian SSR - with the flag and coat of arms of this republic. Pridnestrovie still uses the symbols of the Soviet times.
Soon Chisinau tried to restore the territorial integrity of the country by sending the army and police to Transnistria. A war began that claimed the lives of about 850 people from Tiraspol and three thousand from Chisinau.
The fighting stopped only after units of the Russian army, led by the famous General Alexander Lebed, intervened in the conflict. The presidents of Russia and Moldova signed the “Agreement on the principles of a peaceful settlement”, according to which Russian soldiers in Transnistria received the status of peacekeepers.
Currently, Russian, Moldovan, Transnistrian and Ukrainian peacekeepers are stationed in Transnistria. However, if in Tiraspol the Russians are perceived almost as their own army, guaranteeing peace, then high-ranking politicians from Chisinau regard the presence of Russian soldiers as a “threat” and propose to “reformat” the peacekeeping operation.
Back in 2009, the then President of Moldova Vladimir Voronin said: “We allow the presence of civilian observers, but not military peacekeepers.” And the chairman of the Moldovan parliament, Mihai Ghimpu, said: “As soon as Russia recognized the independence of Moldova, it must withdraw its troops.” Ghimpu, by the way, likes to remind us of an existing Russian proverb: “Where a foreign soldier stands, there is a smell of gunpowder.”
Last year the government in Chisinau changed, but its position remained the same. “The peacekeeping mission must be reformatted into a civilian one under an international mandate,” the new Prime Minister of Moldova, Vladimir Filat, has repeatedly stated.
" We would be forced to speak Moldovan"
“We don’t need any European policemen, we don’t need the UN - we trust Russian peacekeepers more, we know them. Thanks to them, we have a peaceful sky above our heads,” says 71-year-old Tiraspol resident Vitaly Bondarenko, a former ataman of the Black Sea Cossack army, one of active participants in that war.
He became famous for the fact that with 32 Cossacks, he “brazenly took up arms in the 14th Army” (parts of the Russian army stationed in Transnistria - RIA Novosti), went to the neighboring city of Bendery and for several days defended the building of a communications center, located in a strategic location, from attacks by several hundred Moldovan police. The ataman still does not travel to Chisinau - the official authorities of Moldova consider him a criminal.
We are talking in the courtyard of Bondarenko’s house, above our heads is not the sky, but heavy bunches of grapes. Cossack is sure that if it were not for the Russian peacekeepers, the Moldovan side would have gained the upper hand, “we would all be forced to speak Moldovan and write in Latin, and only native speakers would occupy leadership positions.”
“I don’t know what the generation after us will decide, but as long as the Cossacks are alive, we will not allow annexation to Moldova, and the president of Transnistria, who talks about this, will be removed from office on the same day,” the Cossack promises, picking a grape and sending it to mouth.
Lack of dialogue
The younger generation of Pridnestrovians, who have already grown up under the shadow of Russian bayonets, are no less radical than the participants in those distant events.
I’m 22 years old, so it turns out that I’ve been living with the peacekeepers all my life,” laughs Moldovan Doina, who works as a saleswoman in a store. - They don't bother us. But no one knows what will happen if they leave. Will they want to capture us again?
There are about a third of ethnic Moldovans in Transnistria. Most of them have Moldovan passports, and the luckiest ones also have Romanian ones. According to Doina, they do not feel any discrimination from the local authorities and therefore do not rush to Moldova.
"We are accustomed to living in an unrecognized republic. Who wants to work in Europe, who wants to work in Moscow. You can also find work here, though the salaries are low. But what will happen if we are returned to Moldova, no one knows - because they have The republic is also poor."
When you come to Moldova, you feel crooked looks on yourself, - admits the waitress Anya from the trendy cafe "Abajour". - My friend bought an apartment in Chisinau, I helped them move. Seeing our Pridnestrovian numbers, we were told fifteen times that we had parked in the wrong place, that we had “come in large numbers” and, in general, it would be better for us to go back to Tiraspol.
Anya and her friends associate their future rather with Russia - most of them have Russian citizenship, many study at Russian universities, where they enter according to the results of the Transnistrian USE.
Transnistria and Moldova share a strange relationship, which, however, is typical for a country, one part of which considers itself independent, and the other does not agree with this. For example, Moldovan students have the right to freely enroll in state-funded places at the Pridnestrovian State University, but at the same time, according to Anya, they keep to themselves - in their groups they teach in the Moldovan language and they have little contact with local students.
As part of the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the deployment of peacekeepers in the unrecognized republic, several television talk shows and an academic conference were held at which the importance of the presence of peacekeepers was discussed. But at none of these events was the Moldovan point of view on the problem expressed by its speakers themselves.
For example, during a recording of the “Public Diplomacy” TV show, the presenter asked a representative of the Transnistrian government to talk about the position of Chisinau, who stated that the opponents’ theses “are not supported by any arguments.”
But on the same talk show, whose participants competed in arguments in favor of Russian soldiers continuing to remain in Transnistria, one of the officers said: “It is important for Russia to have a military presence on the Dniester.”
And the head of the Department of Sociology at the Transnistrian State University, Elena Bobkova, announced the following figures: 92% of Transnistrian residents believe that the current format of the peacekeeping operation should be preserved. And 43%, with varying degrees of conviction, “do not rule out that aggression against the republic may be repeated.”
She has no data on residents of the rest of Moldova who would believe that there is no place for soldiers of another country on the territory of the republic.
On the eve of the 25th anniversary of the entry of peacekeeping forces into Transnistria, which stopped the bloody conflict, which, even according to rough estimates, cost the lives of thousands of civilians and four and a half thousand wounded, the Moldovan parliament presented the Russian “blue helmets” with a kind of “gift” by accepting a statement on the withdrawal peacekeeping contingent of the Russian Federation. And although, as parliamentarians clarify, this is just a declaration, and not a bill, it seems that this was done specifically in order to spoil the memorable date, to serve it with its own “sauce”, focusing attention on the supposed undesirability and illegality of the presence of peacekeepers in region. If we evaluate other similar recent decisions, we can observe a whole chain of provocative attacks against Russia's peacekeeping efforts. For example, we can recall the recent decision of the Constitutional Court of Moldova, which equated the Russian military in the region with the occupying troops, as well as the expulsion from the country of a number of Russian diplomats involved in the work of the joint control commission. Chisinau is trying to play on anti-Russian sentiments, playing along with the West, and at the same time demand some preferences from Russia - this is the opinion of some analysts about the situation. It is clear that the Moldovan authorities will not be able to sit on two chairs. However, how will such games affect the relations between Chisinau and Tiraspol, will they not become a reason for another aggravation of already complicated relations?.. Peace bringers
Transnistria, whose 60 percent of residents are Russian and Ukrainian, sought secession from Moldova even before the collapse of the USSR, fearing that the republic would choose a path within Romania. In 1992, after a failed attempt by the Moldovan authorities to solve the problem of Transnistria by force, this region became virtually territory beyond the control of Chisinau. The fighting here took place between Moldovan troops, the forces of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and special services and the armed formations of the unrecognized Transnistrian Moldavian Republic. The fighting intensified in the summer of 1992, and only the entry of Russian troops made it possible to stop the bloodshed. On July 7, 1992, Russia and Moldova signed a plan for a peaceful resolution of the conflict, on July 21, an agreement on a peaceful settlement was concluded, which the Transnistrian side agreed to, and on July 29, Russian peacekeeping forces were sent to Bendery and Dubossary. On August 1, 1992, the process of disengagement of the armed forces of the conflicting parties was completed. Later, the Joint Control Commission and joint peacekeeping forces were created. Russian, Moldovan and Transnistrian military personnel were stationed in Transnistria as a contingent of peacekeepers. Since 1993, the OSCE has joined the peace process, and since 1995, Ukraine has joined (today the Blue Helmets contingent includes observers from this country). Currently, the peacekeeping forces are composed of 402 Russian military personnel, 492 Transnistrian, 355 Moldovan, as well as ten military observers from Ukraine. The service is organized at 15 stationary posts and checkpoints, which are located in key sections of the security zone stretching along the Dniester for 225 km by 12-24 km in width. President Igor Dodon called the current action of the Moldovan government a provocation against attempts to correct the situation in relations with Transnistria, undertaken by President Igor Dodon Parliament member Vlad Batryncha. “This is completely inappropriate,” he emphasized. By the way, deputies from the Socialist Party faction left the meeting room in protest. Igor Dodon himself also considers the parliamentary statement a provocation, emphasizing that “these actions are aimed at worsening relations with the Russian Federation and undermining the successes that were achieved jointly with the Russian leadership, namely in the field of export of Moldovan products, the situation with migrants, regional cooperation , educational and humanitarian programs.” As Dodon wrote on his Facebook page, “this provocation fits into a series of actions by the parliamentary majority under the leadership of the Democratic Party to escalate the situation in the region and primarily in relation to Russia, on the eve of the visit of the Deputy Prime Minister Russian Federation of Dmitry Rogozin to Moldova". Nevertheless, as stated by Speaker of Parliament Andrian Candu, “the declaration on the withdrawal of Russian troops from the territory of the country has been approved. This is a political decision." The document calls on international organizations and mediators in the negotiation process to “initiate political discussions regarding the transformation of the peacekeeping operation on the Dniester into a civilian mission under an international mandate.”
Chisinau "war party"
The fulfillment of peacekeeping tasks in Transnistria fully complies with the Russian-Moldovan Agreement of July 21, 1992 on the principles of the peaceful settlement of the armed conflict in this region of the Republic of Moldova. Major General Igor Smoliy, Chief of the Operational Directorate - Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Ground Forces of the Russian Ministry of Defense, draws attention to this. During recent hearings in the Federation Council on the activities of the Russian "blue helmets", he reported that since the beginning of the peacekeeping operation in Pridnestrovie, no aggravation of the situation had been allowed. And this is precisely the merit of the Russian peacekeepers. At the same time, peacekeepers in this region have plenty of problems. First of all, man-made problems. Thus, the Moldovan side has recently tightened the rules for the entry of Russian peacekeepers into this territory, imposing on our military personnel sent to serve in the peacekeeping contingent the requirement to provide information from their official biography. “Let me remind you that this contradicts Russian legislation, including those related to the protection of personal data,” Igor Smolii draws attention. However, due to such obstacles posed by Chisinau, the rotation of the next group of our peacekeepers has been delayed since April. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation is involved in solving the problem that has arisen. The fact that part of the current leadership of Moldova adheres to a rather rough version of solving the so-called "Transnistrian issue" is also evidenced by other facts. For example, not so long ago, the opening of the Moldovan-Ukrainian customs post "Pervomaisk-Kuchurgan" was held with pomp. Moldovan Prime Minister Pavel Philip even invited Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to this ceremony. The whole problem is that this post is located within the borders of Transnistria. According to the head of the PMR, Vadim Krasnoselsky, they regard these actions as "one-sided attempts to completely control our exports and imports, as well as the movement of citizens across the Pridnestrovian-Ukrainian border." According to the Pridnestrovian authorities, the new regime threatens the supply of the republic, undermines the sphere of individual entrepreneurship , threatens with the detention of goods and arrests of Pridnestrovians, against whom criminal cases have been opened in Moldova. According to preliminary estimates, the losses of the republic's economy will amount to more than $40 million. And the appearance of Moldovan security officials in close proximity to the PMR military threatens regional stability. “There are agreements reached earlier, there is the right of Pridnestrovie to carry out economic activity, the right to free movement of citizens,” Vadim Krasnoselsky reminds. - Of course, this post violated all previously reached agreements. Those officials who generated and promoted this idea are probably thinking about escalating the conflict. Why do this? After 25 years of peaceful coexistence of Transnistria, Moldova and Ukraine, why light a fuse that could lead to an explosion?”
At the behest of Brussels and Washington
Professor of the Russian Higher School of Economics, philosopher and political scientist Oleg Matveychev is sure that the appearance of a joint Moldovan-Ukrainian checkpoint on the border with Pridnestrovie is a concerted action of the two countries on a command from Brussels and Washington. Vlad Plahotniuc, who controls the parliament, the government, and the president, the expert believes. - His government is anti-Russian. They operate in the same regime as Poroshenko.”
According to the President of the PMR Vadim Krasnoselsky, today certain external forces, through the hands of Moldova and Ukraine, are deliberately creating conditions for destabilization and gradual unfreezing of the conflict. “Such actions not only in front of Pridnestrovie, but also in front of all responsible world players, are fabricating an absolutely artificial choice between a new round of forceful confrontation or dishonor in the form of political concessions against the will of the Transnistrian people,” he notes. - As history shows, in the end all participants in such geopolitical combinations lose. But the saddest thing is that ordinary people and the very cause of preserving peace and stability suffer.” Pressure on Transnistria, as the authorities of the republic note, is being implemented with the tacit consent of a number of participants in the negotiation process, including the Austrian chairmanship in the OSCE, which has been refusing to convene an international negotiation format for six months "5+2". In addition, the provocative ideas of “forcing Pridnestrovie” to the so-called reintegration, expressed by the Moldovan expert community, cause alarm in Tiraspol. The PMR draws attention to the fact that these plans involve a wide range of violent methods that have nothing to do with civilized approaches and respect for human rights. Even the current anniversary date - the 25th anniversary of the establishment of peace in the Pridnestrovian land and the cessation of bloodshed - was decided in Chisinau to be used as a pretext for whipping up hysteria. And the point is not only in the adopted statement on the withdrawal of Russian peacekeepers: fortunately, this crazy idea of the parliament, as they themselves admit same as deputies, means nothing. In Moldova, they would generally like to disrupt the celebration of this date. How else can one explain the proposal of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Moldova to cancel the visit of the Russian delegation on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the peacekeeping operation on the Dniester. Moldovan diplomats have already sent a letter to the Russian embassy in Chisinau, which contains a refusal to grant permission to fly over the airspace of Moldova and land aircraft at the airports of Chisinau and Tiraspol. Deputy Prime Minister of Russia, Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for Transnistria Dmitry Rogozin has already reacted to this attack by the Moldovan authorities. I'll definitely come. We will meet with the President of Moldova and with the leadership of the PMR,” he wrote in his microblog on Twitter. Stability factor
“The withdrawal of Russian peacekeepers from Transnistria is impossible without the consent of Russia: Russian military personnel have been on the territory of the PMR since the Moldovan-Transnistrian conflict and the signing of the Agreement between the heads of the Russian Federation and Moldova,” emphasizes the first vice-president of the International Public Fund “Russian Peace Fund”, member of the Public Chamber Russia Elena Sutormina. - Our peacekeeping contingent ensures stability and calm in the region. True, neither Ukraine nor Moldova are interested in this tranquility, otherwise they would have long ago lifted the blockade of imports of any goods into Transnistria, which they organized in June last year. Transnistria cannot be suppressed only thanks to the Russian military stationed on the territory of the republic, where a large number of our compatriots live, and we are obliged to protect them from the aggression of some Moldovan politicians who have long wanted to deprive Transnistria of its independent status." "Started on July 29, 1992 year, the operation of the Russian Federation to separate the conflicting parties and establish a functional peacekeeping mechanism made a decisive, strategic contribution to the ceasefire and the establishment of real peace on our land, notes the President of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic Vadim Krasnoselsky. - Only the direct participation of Russia made it possible to stop the bloody war and put an end to the killings of hundreds of Pridnestrovians, whose entire guilt was that they chose their language, their culture, chose freedom and the desire to build their future together with Russia. Only Russia was able to stop this outrage, act as a real peacemaker, and with its very presence temper the ardor and senseless bravado of the Moldovan side for many years. People wanted peace, and peace came. For which we are immensely grateful to Russia.” 
Today, as the head of the PMR emphasizes, only a peacekeeping operation on the Dniester with the leading participation of Russia is a factor in a stable, peaceful future for the entire region. “The peacekeeping operation on the Dniester under the auspices of Russia has clearly demonstrated its viability, because in 25 years not a single peacekeeper or military observer has died in the line of duty,” he is convinced. “Therefore, it is natural that there is no alternative to this successful mission, the current peacekeeping format, and there cannot be until the Moldovan-Transnistrian conflict is completely resolved.”
1989
Rally in Transnistria
1989 MOLDAVAN NATIONALISM.
Representatives of the Popular Front of Moldova (PFM) formed the leadership of the republic, which pursued a policy of prioritizing the national interests of the Moldovan nation, which led to discrimination against national minorities and clashes on ethnic grounds.
1989 PRO-ROMANIAN SEPARATISM.
Pro-Romanian sentiments gained significant popularity in the country. The goal of the unionists was the annexation of Moldova to Romania. Slogans began to be heard: “Romanians, unite,” “Moldova for Moldovans,” and “Russians for the Dniester, Jews for the Dniester.”
The Supreme Council of the Moldavian SSR adopted a law establishing a single state language in the republic - Moldavian. In response, city councils in Transnistria suspended its operation on their territory.
November 10, 1989. On Soviet Police Day, an attempt was made to storm the building of the republican Ministry of Internal Affairs. Pro-Soviet citizens were dismissed.
1990
The Supreme Council of the Moldavian SSR established a new name for the state - the Republic of Moldova. State symbols were adopted, and Soviet symbols were abolished.
The Second Extraordinary Congress of Deputies of all levels of Transnistria was held in Tiraspol, which proclaimed the formation of the Transnistrian Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic (as part of the USSR), with the inclusion of Grigoriopol, Dubossary, Rybnitsa, Slobodzeya districts and the cities of Bendery, Dubossary, Rybnitsa and Tiraspol.
A protest rally took place in Dubossary against the deployment of an armed detachment in police cars without license plates in the area without the consent of local authorities. Formed detachments of people's vigilantes began to protect order in the city.
Residents of Dubossary blocked the bridge across the Dniester, but at five o'clock in the evening a detachment of riot police under the command of the head of the Chisinau City Internal Affairs Directorate, Vyrlan, began an assault. The riot police first shot in the air, then used batons and tear gas. 135 police school cadets and 8 officers led by Lieutenant Colonel Neykov also arrived at the scene. As a result of the use of weapons by riot police, three people were killed, fifteen were wounded, of which 9 people received bullet wounds. The riot police retreated after some time, and in the evening of the same day, on the orders of the separatists, all entrances to the city were blocked.
Information about the events in Dubosary led to the creation of a temporary emergency committee in Bendery, which took urgent measures to block the entrances to the city. A defense headquarters was organized and volunteer registration began. Information about convoys approaching the city from Causeni and Chisinau led to a call from Bendery radio: “We ask all men to go to the square and help protect the city from national extremists!” The Moldavian convoy from Causeni turned to Ursoi and settled in the Gerbovetsky forest. The gradual withdrawal of the Moldavian troops began only in the second half of November 3. Barriers at the entrances to the city and volunteer duty remained on November 4.
USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev signed a decree “On measures to normalize the situation in the Moldavian SSR,” which ordered the dissolution of the Transnistrian Moldavian SSR.
1991
August 25, 1991. The “Declaration of Independence of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic” was adopted.
The law did not grant Transnistria the right to self-determination. In addition, the USSR government was required to end the “illegal state of occupation and withdraw Soviet troops from the national territory of the Republic of Moldova.”
September 1991. The Supreme Council of Transnistria decided to create the Republican Guard. The reassignment of the internal affairs departments of Transnistria began.
Moldovan police entered Dubossary. In response to this, one of the leaders of Transnistria, Grigory Marakutsa, led the police and began to create paramilitary forces.
November 5, 1991. The PMSSR was renamed the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic.
The day after the ratification of the Belovezhskaya Agreement by the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR, the Moldovan police made a third attempt to capture Dubossary. During a 40-minute shootout between the police and the PMR guards, four policemen and three guardsmen - militiamen from Rybnitsa were killed, 15 people were wounded, about 20 guardsmen went missing. In response, police officers were taken as hostages. In Bendery, the pre-city executive committee Vyacheslav Kogut introduced a state of emergency.
A police lieutenant was killed in Dubossary. Two buses with Moldovan police officers were sent to Bendery. Cossacks and volunteers from different cities of Russia began to arrive in Transnistria.
1992
Transnistrian militias and Cossacks disarmed the district police department of Dubossary.
President of Moldova Mircea Snegur announced the introduction of a state of emergency in Transnistria.
March-April 1992.
About 18,000 reservists were drafted into the Moldovan army.
A unit of the Moldovan police entered Bender, accompanied by two armored personnel carriers. The police made an attempt to disarm the Transnistrian guards. A bus with cotton mill workers got into a shootout. There were dead and wounded on both sides.
Near the village of Karagash in the vicinity of Tiraspol, militants from the so-called "Ilashku group" killed the Transnistrian politician Nikolai Ostapenko. Mobilization began in Transnistria. 14 thousand workers were issued weapons. By order of the Pridnestrovian command, bridges across the Dniester near Criulyan and the village of Bychok were blown up. The defense of the dam of the Dubossary power plant and the Rybnitsa bridge was organized.
May 23, 1992. By order of Mircea Snegur, units of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of National Security were transferred to the operational subordination of the Ministry of Defense.
May 1992. PEOPLE SAVE DUBOSSARY FROM ARTILLERY STARRING.
After a three-day artillery shelling of the city of Dubossary, a crowd of fifteen thousand local residents blocked the road for the tank and motorized rifle companies of the 14th Army returning from the training ground. 10 T-64BV tanks and 10 BTR-70 tanks were captured. An armored group was immediately formed. She was thrown into an area from which there was intense shelling. The armored group managed to suppress the Moldavian artillery. But there were losses. One of the T-64s was set on fire by an unidentified anti-tank weapon. As a result, the ammunition detonated, and the tank was destroyed.
Early summer 1992. AN ATTEMPT TO PEACELY SETTLEMENT OF THE CONFLICT.
Parliamentarians of Moldova, together with Pridnestrovian deputies, approved the basic principles of a peaceful settlement.
Transnistrian Guards and other paramilitary units launched a violent attack on the local police station. According to Transnistrian sources, on that day, Moldovan police captured a PMR guard officer, and a group of guards who came to his aid was fired upon. After this, the leadership of the Republic of Moldova gave an order to conduct an operation in the city of Bendery.
Victims of the fighting in Bendery
Moldovan columns of armored personnel carriers, artillery, several T-55 tanks entered Bender along the Chisinau and Caushan highways. Within a few hours, the city was occupied by divisions and units of the Moldovan army. Indiscriminate firing from all types of weapons led to a huge number of casualties among the civilian population. The Moldavian units inflicted massive blows on the building of the city executive committee, the barracks of the guards, and the city police department.
Units of the Moldovan army captured the Bendery-1 station and Zhilsotsbank. The fire was conducted by tanks, self-propelled guns, and armored personnel carriers. Mortar shelling of the city was carried out from the village of Lipkani. One of the mines hit the fuel depot of military unit 48414 of the 14th Army of Russia, which led to the death of Russian soldiers. Several tanks of the PMR armed forces tried to break into Bendery to help the defenders, but were stopped by the fire of Rapira anti-tank guns.
In the afternoon, units of the Moldovan army stormed the Bendery fortress, where the missile brigade of the 14th army was located. When the attack was repulsed from the Russian side, there were killed and wounded. Several more servicemen were injured from shells that accidentally flew into the territory of the military units of the Russian army. Nevertheless, units of the 14th Army continued to take a position of strict neutrality. At the same time, women from the so-called "Bendery Strike Committee" helped the guards, Cossacks and militias to capture several units of military equipment of the 59th motorized rifle division of the Russian army. This technique moved from Tiraspol to Bendery, crushing both batteries of Moldovan artillery on the bridge, and made its way to the besieged building of the city executive committee. Tanks broke through the siege ring. The most fierce fighting took place near the city police department. The Pridnestrovians pulled everything they could there: about two hundred infantrymen, a platoon of T-64BV tanks (one soon broke down and went to Tiraspol for repairs), two BMP-1s, a Shilka, four MTLBs. The Moldavian troops began to retreat.
By morning, Moldovan troops controlled only two Bender microdistricts and the suburban village of Varnitsa.
Around 12:00 on June 21, 1992. Mortar shelling of the Leninsky microdistrict began. Moldovan snipers operated in the city, shooting at any moving target. Due to the ongoing fighting, it was impossible to remove corpses from the streets, which in 30-degree heat created the threat of an epidemic.
The Moldovan Air Force tried to destroy the strategically important bridge across the Dniester, connecting Transnistria with Bendery. For the strike, two MiG-29 aircraft were involved, which carried six OFAB-250 bombs each. To control the results of the raid, one MiG-29UB took part in the operation. At 19.15, the Moldovan pilots bombed, but inaccurately, and the bridge remained intact, and all the bombs fell on the nearby village of Parkany. The house in which the entire family died was destroyed by a direct hit. Moldovan officials initially denied that their air force was involved in the raid; however, later the Minister of War of the Republic of Moldova acknowledged the fact of the destruction of the house, but rejected the statements of the media about the loss of life.
There was relative calm. The city council managed to negotiate a ceasefire with the police department in order to bury the dead, the number of which reached three hundred over the past night. There was no electricity in the city, telephone communications did not work, the gas was turned off. Snipers were still active. The local police, holding part of the city with the support of a special police detachment (OPON), mined the streets, erected barricades, and equipped trenches.At about 2 p.m., 3 planes land in Tiraspol. The commander of the 14th Army, General Netkachev, meets an officer in the uniform of a paratrooper colonel. This was Major General Alexander Ivanovich Lebed, deputy commander of the Airborne Forces for combat training, a specialist in “hot spots”. A meeting of the Military Council of the Army was held, which was attended by the commanders of the armed formations of Transnistria. It became clear that there was no connection between the 14th Army and the military forces of the PMR.
The Military Council of the 14th Army issued a statement. Addressing the heads of government and people of the Commonwealth of Independent States, the military council condemned the use of Moldovan aviation for peaceful purposes in Transnistria. This action did not make an impression on Chisinau. Then Alexander Lebed said at a press conference that the 14th Army was in “armed neutrality - as long as they don’t touch us, and we won’t touch anyone.”
Major General Alexander Lebed takes over as commander of the 14th Army instead of Netkachev. Who strictly carried out the order of the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, occupied complete neutrality, despite significant losses among army personnel and the destruction of its material base
At about 7 p.m., the Moldovan army resumed massive shelling of the city using howitzers, mortars, grenade launchers and small arms. The PMR armed formations managed to suppress some enemy firing points only after three or four days.
The new commander gives the order to the artillery to destroy ammunition depots, fuel and lubricants and enemy artillery. On the night of June 30, one of the Russian divisions strikes a Moldovan BM-21 Grad rocket battery on the Kitscan bridgehead, completely destroying it.
July 1, 1992.In the area of combat operations in the area of Koshnitsa and Dorotsky, a mortar battery and an ammunition depot were destroyed.
July 2, 1992.A mortar battery, an observation post and a police column were destroyed. On the night of July 2-3, a blow was struck at the recreation centers of the Special Purpose Police Detachment and the regular army of Moldova, fuel depots, artillery batteries and a command post.
They made it clear to Chisinau that a few more days would not prevent a tank attack.
The presidents of Moldova and Russia meet in Moscow and make decisions. First: stop hostilities and disperse the warring forces; second: determine the political status of Transnistria; third: withdraw units of the 14th Army in accordance with bilateral agreements, but only after the implementation of the first two points; fourth: to form and send units from the Russian Airborne Forces to Transnistria to conduct a peacekeeping mission.
Major General Lebed makes a statement sharply denouncing the Moldovan action of “restoring constitutional order.” He reported that on the Transnistrian side alone, the number of killed reaches 650 people, and the number of wounded - up to four thousand. He called the regime of President Snegur fascist and the Minister of Defense of Moldova, General Costash, a cannibal.
The Moldovan side puts forward a demand for a truce. Once again, an agreement was reached on a ceasefire, which, however, was constantly violated not only in Bendery, but also along the entire confrontation line up to Dubossary. In Bendery, parts of Moldova systematically destroyed enterprises whose equipment could not be taken out. Throughout the month, fighting took place in different areas of the city.
During the targeted shelling of the House of Soviets of the city of Dubossary, 8 heads of enterprises and organizations of Pridnestrovie were killed.
Presidents of Russia and Moldova Boris Yeltsin and Mircea Snegur signed an agreement "On the principles of peaceful settlement of the armed conflict in the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova".
July 1992. THE LAST ATTEMPT OF THE MOLDOVANS.
The attempt of the Moldavian army to take Bendery was unsuccessful. The new commander of the 14th Army, Major General Alexander Lebed, ordered the approaches to the city and the bridge across the Dniester to be blocked.
Russia, Moldova and Transnistria declared the strip along the Dniester a security zone, the control of which was entrusted to a trilateral peacekeeping force consisting of Russian, Moldavian and Transnistrian contingents under the supervision of the Joint Control Commission (JCC). A “special regime” was introduced in Bendery.
Military planes carrying Russian peacekeepers are landing at the airfield in Tiraspol.
Russian peacekeepers enter Bendery. Residents of the city, as in 1944 during the liberation from fascist occupation, bring flowers and bread to the liberators; many have tears in their eyes, but these are tears of deliverance and joy. Peace has come to the long-suffering Transnistrian land.
Russian peacekeepers in Transnistria Meeting of Russian military in Bendery
LOSSES:
According to various estimates, losses during the conflict were as follows. As of mid-July 1992, 950 people were killed on both sides and about 4.5 thousand were injured. The Transnistrian side alone lost about 600 people dead, 899 were wounded, and about 50 were missing, but experts believe that the real losses were large. 1,280 residential buildings were destroyed and damaged, of which 60 were completely destroyed. 19 public education facilities (including 3 schools), 15 healthcare facilities were destroyed. 46 industrial, transport and construction enterprises were damaged. 5 multi-storey residential buildings of the state housing stock could not be restored, 603 state houses were partially damaged. The city suffered damage in excess of 10 billion rubles at 1992 prices.
How they tried to resolve the conflict in Transnistria after the war.
May 8, 1997In Moscow, a memorandum was signed on ways to normalize relations, providing for the construction of relations between the parties within the framework of a common state within the borders of the former Moldavian SSR.
1999 STEPASHIN WAS GOING TO DISARM TRANSDNISTRIA.
Russian Prime Minister Stepashin prepared scandalous agreements with the Republic of Moldova, according to which the armed forces of the PMR were disarmed and the statehood of the PMR was actually liquidated.In the first half of November, the new Prime Minister of Russia, Vladimir Putin, adjusted these agreements. The threat to the independence of Transnistria is no longer there.November 25, 2003.Moldova unexpectedly rejected the settlement plan proposed by Russia, which provided for the existence of Transnistria and Gagauzia as subjects of an “asymmetric federation.”
September 17, 2006.A referendum was held in Transnistria, in which 97% of the inhabitants voted for joining Russia.
February 19, 2008.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the PMR announced the need to recognize the independence of the republic following the example of Kosovo. In March, the State Duma stated that Transnistria is a separate case and Russia sees it as part of Moldova with a special status.
In July 2012. The Russian Foreign Ministry reaffirmed its position on the basic principles of resolving the conflict through the federalization of Moldova and the receipt of firm guarantees of its neutral status.
The Moldovan parliament demanded that Russia withdraw its troops from the territory of the Transnistrian region. This is stated in the declaration adopted on Friday, July 21, at the plenary session of the legislature. Meanwhile, July 21 marked the 25th anniversary of the signing of the agreement "On the principles of the settlement of the armed conflict in the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova."
After the signing of this document in Moscow by the then presidents of Russia Boris Yeltsin and Moldavia Mircea Snegur, Russian peacekeepers entered the region in the presence of the leader of the unrecognized "PMR" Igor Smirnov. Since then, disputes have not stopped about whether a peacekeeping mission is needed in Pridnestrovie and whether it is time to replace the military with observers from the OSCE. DW, with the help of experts, tried to understand this issue.
A little history
Tiraspol celebrates the Day of Entry of Peacekeeping Forces on July 29. This date is associated with the appearance of Russian "blue helmets" here a quarter of a century ago. A few days later, the Moldovan and Transnistrian military, as well as a group of military observers from Ukraine, joined the peacekeeping mission. The Joint Control Commission (JCC) resolves issues related to the peacekeeping operation and the security zone.
It stretched along the map of Moldova for 200 km from north to south and for 15-20 km from west to east. The city of Bender, which is under the dual jurisdiction of Moldova and the unrecognized "Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic", also fell into the security zone. The headquarters of the OKK is located in Bendery. The joint peacekeeping force today numbers about 1,500 people.
On May 2, 2017, the Constitutional Court of Moldova declared the presence of Russian peacekeepers in the country illegal.
" Better for Russia"
The authorities in Chisinau insist on the withdrawal of Russian peacekeepers. As Vlad Plahotniuc, leader of the ruling Democratic Party and coordinator of the pro-European parliamentary coalition, said at a meeting of the Council of the Socialist International in New York on July 11, “we consider it necessary to transform the Russian peacekeeping mission in our country in the conflict zone into a civilian one, under an international mandate.”
Director of the Center for Strategic Research and Consulting Politicon Anatoliy Taranu is confident that replacing peacekeepers with civilian observers from the OSCE should be beneficial to Russia itself, which then will not be reproached for controlling the region. But she controls him, which is why Tserana believes that she does not want to withdraw her military. As the expert said in an interview with DW, "the peacekeeping operation maintains the illusion that an armed conflict can occur here, but it will not happen unless Russia intervenes."
Security expert Semyon Nikulin states: “For 25 years there has not been a single serious incident here, the peacekeeping mission has exhausted itself.” The situation in the region is stable, it is necessary to stop the military operation and move on to a civilian or police operation, the expert shared his point of view with DW. According to Nikulin, “we are not talking about squeezing Russia out of the region; it may well send its civilian observers here.”
" Peacekeepers must stay"
Meanwhile, Pridnestrovie is convinced that it is impossible to abandon the peacekeeping format. This was stated on June 17 during a round table meeting in Tiraspol by the representative of the Pridnestrovian delegation to the Joint Control Commission Vasily Vakarchuk. As he put it, “those who insist on changing the current format of the peacekeeping operation insist on the resumption of armed confrontation.”
Context
Chisinau political analyst, director of the Institute for Security Problems Valeriu Ostalep points out that replacing the format requires the consent of both parties. But agreement, the expert is sure, is not expected in the near future: “Because Chisinau is taking many wrong steps - both by suppressing the Russian language and Russian culture, and in relation to Transnistria, without taking into account the opinions of its residents.” According to Ostalep, only when Pridnestrovians begin to trust Chisinau will it be possible to talk about changing the format.
Airspace closed
On July 19, the Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration (MFAEI) sent a letter to the Russian Embassy in Chisinau, stating that “the competent authorities of the Republic of Moldova are forced to deny the movement of aircraft of the Russian Armed Forces through the country’s airspace and landing at the airports of Chisinau and Tiraspol.” .
The Russian delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin was supposed to fly on these planes to events dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the start of the peacekeeping operation on the Dniester.
The authors of the letter also report that the MFAEI regrets the lack of a common plan for celebrating the 25th anniversary of the peacekeeping mission on the Dniester, discussed by all interested parties. The department believes that such events are “inappropriate to carry out” unilaterally.
See also:
Watch video 02:18
Moldovan exclave in Transnistria: life in constant fear (10/18/2015)
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Transnistria yesterday and today
A quarter of a century ago, as a result of an armed conflict, Moldova was divided in two, and the Dniester River became a kind of border. In the east of the country, on the left bank of the Dniester, an unrecognized “Transnistrian Moldavian Republic” arose, oriented toward Russia. You can get from Moldova to any settlement in Transnistria only through the administrative border.
Transnistria yesterday and today
Peacekeepers on duty
Bendery is the second largest city of the unrecognized “Transnistrian Moldavian Republic”. It is located on the right bank of the Dniester, but is under the jurisdiction of Tiraspol. Previously, it took 40 minutes to get from Chisinau to Bendery. Now there is a danger of getting stuck at Transnistrian customs. In front of it is a peacekeeping post, where Moldovan, Transnistrian and Russian military personnel serve.
Transnistria yesterday and today
Varnitsa enclave
The village of Varnitsa stands on the banks of the Dniester. It is located within the city of Bendery, but administratively belongs to the Novo-Annensky district of right bank Moldova. A quarter of a century ago, during the armed conflict between the banks of the Dniester, its residents supported Chisinau, refusing to become part of the unrecognized Transnistria. In the photo - a military memorial in Varnitsa in memory of the fallen fellow villagers.
Transnistria yesterday and today
Named after Charles XII
Varnita has something to offer historians. This is probably the only village in the world where there is a street named after the Swedish King Charles XII. After the defeat near Poltava in 1709, he fled here from the army of Peter I. In 1711-1713. where the gardens of the Varnitsa peasants are now, a royal residence and a settlement grew up, which was called New Stockholm. In 1993, the remains of the royal office were found in Varnitsa.
Transnistria yesterday and today
With the help of the European Union
In the near future, a museum of Charles XII will be opened on the territory of the former royal residence. The project, with financial support from the European Union and Sweden, was initiated by a Swedish non-governmental organization with the difficult-to-reproduce name Nordiskkulturochhistoryformedling. The local women's organization, headed by Veronica Stefan, also got involved.
Transnistria yesterday and today
Mazepa's treasure
There is another memorial sign on Charles XII Street. It marks the place of death of the Ukrainian hetman Ivan Mazepa, who fled here from the Russian army along with the Swedish king. According to legend, while escaping, Mazepa managed to take with him 2 barrels of gold and several bags of silver. Some drowned in the Dnieper, but some, historians say, ended up in Varnitsa. Mazepa died here, in a peasant house, on September 22, 1709.
Transnistria yesterday and today
Residents of houses located opposite each other call this Varnitsa street differently. Some believe that they live on Nikolai Yorga Street, others claim that they live on Borisovskaya. This is because the odd side of the street belongs to the Moldovan Varnitsa, and the even side to the Transnistrian Bendery. Because of this, a lot of problems arise, for example, for businessmen who want to register a company here.
Transnistria yesterday and today
Local realities
Our guide around Varnita was a member of the local council, Georgiy Lupu. He said that some residents receive Transnistrian pensions with Russian supplements, because worked at enterprises in Bender. Employees of Varnitsa enterprises receive salaries in Moldovan lei, and pay for housing and communal services in Transnistrian rubles. The ratio between the leu and the ruble is 3:1 in favor of the Transnistrian currency.
Transnistria yesterday and today
Tank in the barn
Georgy took us to the former military base of the 14th Russian Army. The abandoned base holds a lot of interesting things. For example, in one of the garages there is a real tank. True, it was not possible to remove it, because... the owner was absent. He is one of the local residents who purchased a piece of land in this territory along with abandoned rusty equipment. But the guard tower remained.
Transnistria yesterday and today
Bender then and now
To get from Varnitsa to Bendery, you need to go through customs and get a migration card. In June 1992, the city was the site of fierce battles for the bridge across the Dniester between defenders of the integrity of Moldova and supporters of the unrecognized republic. More than a thousand people died in them. Today the city lives an ordinary life and differs from other Moldovan cities except in the abundance of military monuments.
Transnistria yesterday and today
Tickets to the main attraction of the city - the Bendery Fortress - can also be bought for Moldovan lei. Built by the Turks in the 16th century. The fortification has only recently opened for tours. During Soviet times, a missile brigade of the 14th Russian Army and a pontoon-bridge regiment were stationed here. Now a military unit of the army of the unrecognized Transnistrian Republic is adjacent to the fortress.
Transnistria yesterday and today
The same Munchausen
In front of the entrance to the fortress there is the same cannonball on which that same Munchausen flew to look at the positions of the enemy who had taken refuge behind the walls of the citadel. It was no coincidence that both the core and the monument to the literary hero were installed here. The prototype of the story by R.E. Raspe Karl Friedrich Hieronymus Baron von Munchausen actually took part in the storming of the Bendery fortress by Russian troops in 1737.
Transnistria yesterday and today
The bridges are still open
From the observation deck of the Bendery fortress you can see the bridge over the Dniester. Behind it on the opposite side is Tiraspol, the capital of the unrecognized state. All 25 years that have passed since the armed clashes, the bridge does not connect, but rather separates the banks. After the end of the conflict in the summer of 1992, the negotiation process began on its settlement and the status of the Transnistrian region. It still lasts.
For Pridnestrovians, Russia's peacekeeping mission is very important and necessary. This was discussed at a rally in honor of the next anniversary of the deployment of peacekeepers to the banks of the Dniester. The Russian peacekeeping contingent entered the republic after the signing of the Agreement on the Principles of a Peaceful Settlement on July 21, 1992.
On this day Sergei Ivanchenko came to the memorial sign “Blessed are the peacemakers.” He clearly remembers the end of July 1992, when the Russian military entered Bendery. Then, together with all the residents of the city, I met them. And now, remembering those events, she cannot hold back her tears.
Sergei Ivanchenko, resident of the city of Bendery: “We came across the bridge and were greeted by people with flowers, with music, with joy, with tears. When they arrived, they immediately helped and restored peace here. There was no more shooting. They waited because it was very difficult at the time they arrived. I can’t even speak.”
During the entire time that Russian peacekeepers have been on Transnistrian soil, they have shown their effectiveness. According to Tatyana Turanskaya, not a single serious incident occurred in the Security Zone, and many conflict situations were successfully resolved.
Tatyana Turanskaya, Chairman of the Government of the PMR: “The importance of a peacekeeping operation is difficult to overestimate. For Pridnestrovians, this mission is very important and necessary. Pridnestrovians are sincerely grateful to you for your endurance and readiness to protect civilians. For us, Russian peacekeepers, just like 23 years ago, are reliable protection and a guarantor of security and stability.”
Today, more than ever, the special historical role of peacekeepers in the life of our country is acutely felt, they said at the rally. The inviolability of the existing peacekeeping operation format has been proven in practice.
Valery Blizhensky, senior military commander of the Russian contingent of peacekeeping forces in Transnistria: “For more than twenty years, Russian peacekeepers have been guarding peace and tranquility in the region, which gives the population confidence in the future and guarantees that all issues related to conflict resolution will be resolved exclusively in peaceful and civilized ways."
Co-chairman of the Joint Control Commission from Pridnestrovie Oleg Belyakov emphasized the importance of maintaining the current format of the peacekeeping operation. It allows you to maintain peace in the Security Zone for a long time.
Oleg Belyakov, co-chairman of the JCC from Pridnestrovie: “The Pridnestrovian side considers relevant today the basic principles of the joint statement made by the top leadership of Russia, Pridnestrovie and Moldova on March 18, 2009 in Moscow, that the peacekeeping operation on the Dniester in the current format plays a decisive stabilizing role role and provides a unique opportunity for Chisinau and Tiraspol to talk about a peaceful resolution of the conflict. A change in the peacekeeping format, as stated in the joint statement, is possible only after a complete settlement of the Transnistrian conflict.”
Pridnestrovian diplomacy, for its part, is making every effort to create the necessary conditions for the peacekeepers to carry out their tasks normally.
Vitaly Ignatiev, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the PMR: “The main task is to provide diplomatic means with the conditions for conducting a normal peacekeeping operation, since it was the peacekeeping operation that created the conditions for a peaceful political settlement, peaceful dialogue, it has its own format, there is a comprehensive legal framework within the framework of the activities of the Joint Control Commission. Therefore, the task of diplomats is to ensure that the peacekeeping operation functions in a good, normal manner.”
The current peacekeeping operation in Transnistria has an OSCE mandate and is under UN supervision. The peacekeeping mission that Russian soldiers have been carrying out for 23 years is recognized as one of the most successful in the world.
Alexander Lukyanenko, Minister of Defense of the PMR: “The success of any peacekeeping operation always depends on the parties to the agreement. At that moment, this desire of the contracting parties was present, and, of course, a significant role, one might even say a leading role, in the guarantee of success was played by the prompt execution of decisions that were made to conduct a peacekeeping operation. In our military terms, Russian peacekeeping forces instantly landed, parachuted and occupied their positions. Thus, even if there were any changes in the situation - political or other - it would be too late. The Russians worked very quickly, accurately and reliably.”
At the end of the meeting, a solemn ceremony of awarding state awards of Pridnestrovie to military personnel of the Russian peacekeeping contingent took place. After which those gathered laid flowers at the memorial sign “Blessed are the Peacemakers” and the Memorial of Memory and Sorrow.
