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excuse or warning. The attack on the headquarters of the Transnistrian secret services, which as a pro-Russian separatist enclave with strong Soviet nostalgia could only be called “KGB”, is a further step towards the abyss of the Ukraine war. A few weeks ago we watched Russian troops move north from Grigoriopol towards the (unrecognized) border with Ukraine.
The three explosions are a mystery. From Transnistria to Chisinau it is a 20-minute drive. Enough not to hear the roar, but not enough to not feel even more afraid that the war might go this far. Those who struck did so from the territory of the separatist republic, where Moscow had stationed a “peacekeeping force,” without injuring anyone and going unnoticed. An anomaly in a city like Tiraspol, where surveillance systems are widespread. In addition, at least one of the grenade launcher tubes was left on the ground. A weapon like in Transnistria, where the buying and selling of weapons is just one of thousands of illegal trade, so to speak, is relatively easy to find.
The Moldovan government immediately reacted with fears. “The Office of Reintegration Policy (one of the bodies responsible for returning Tiraspol to the authorities of Chisinau, ed.) expresses its concern about the incident that took place in the city of Tiraspol today. According to available information, unidentified people fired grenades at the headquarters of the so-called security structure in the region. According to preliminary information, there are no casualties or injuries. “But what would be the purpose of an act of this magnitude?”The goal of today’s accident – explains the note of the Moldovan government – is that of Create pretexts to increase tension in the security situation in the Transnistrian region, which is not under the control of constitutional authorities. In this context, the Office for Reintegration Policy calls for calm and, together with the relevant national institutions, is monitoring the developments of the case.
The explosions occurred around 5 p.m. local time at the intersection between the via Marx and via Manoilov power plants. The explosions damaged the windows and started a fire. The Interior Ministry of the self-proclaimed government of Transnistria did not provide detailed explanations: “According to preliminary data, shots were fired from a portable anti-tank grenade launcher. There are no casualties,” he said in a statement quoted by Interfax.
But in the background there is a very dangerous game. «Full control of southern Ukraine would allow access to Transnistria“. These words, uttered a few days ago by Rustam Minnekayev, Deputy Commander of the Central Military Region of Russia, are both a threat and a declaration of intent.
The Russophile enclave in Moldova, occupied by Russia with a “peacekeeping force” of more than 1,500 men, is the specter of NATO’s military strategists. An advance of this magnitude would traverse the entire Ukrainian coast and mean that Russian forces would advance hundreds of kilometers further west, past the major Ukrainian coastal cities of Mykolayiv and Odessa, from which Transnistria is 40 kilometers away. The rockets fired on Odessa yesterday are fueling fears again.
In Transnistria, the Russian military had raised the alert level for days. Two weeks ago, “Avvenire” observed movements of Russian troops on the ground, particularly in Grigoriopol and on the roads towards the capital Tiraspol, heading for the unofficial border with Ukraine, which overlooks the Odessa region.
In Moldova, the latest news has sparked concerns that the Chisinau government has been trying to assuage for weeks by reassuring the 3 million residents who could flee to Romania in a few hours. Last week, for the first time in many years, the Moldovan authorities summoned the Russian ambassador to Chisinau to express their disapproval of Moscow’s stated intentions. “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Moldova – according to a note – considers these statements to be unfounded and contradicts Russia’s position in support of our country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within internationally recognized borders”.
Transnistria is a ghost republic that not even Moscow has officially recognized. An ambiguity that allows the Kremlin to justify the presence of its soldiers, classified as “peacekeepers” and not “occupation troops”. After the annexation of Crimea in 2014, Tiraspol asked Russia to recognize it as part of the Russian territories. So far, Putin has left the request in the drawer, often brandishing it as a threat in international negotiations. However, following the recognition of the Donbass republics, many fear that the Transnistrian bid could be accepted, marking another phase in the conflict.
Indeed, the Black Sea hinterland enclave is an ordeal. There is no illegal trade that cannot pass there: arms, drugs, people, oil, even radioactive waste. 40% of the half million inhabitants are of Ukrainian descent and dissatisfaction with the war against Kyiv is growing. Tiraspol’s direct involvement in the conflict could fuel internal tensions. However, should Moscow really succeed in blocking Ukraine’s access to the sea, thereby spilling over into the small and defenseless Moldova, a new front would open up with NATO. «Chisinau is an hour’s drive from the border with Romania, an EU and NATO country. But even if Moscow refrains from a slight bite – observes a European diplomat in Moldova – we must not forget that the Ukrainian region of Odessa borders Romania exactly to the south and it would not be necessary to conquer Moldova to threaten to expand the Conflict at the gates of the EU”.
It is no coincidence that NATO continues to deploy men and vehicles right on the Romania-Ukraine border along the narrow Black Sea coastline. For Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu, this presence “cannot be seen as a provocation from Moscow” but a “legitimate response”.