Transnistria THREAD
I have read so many things about that "country" and would like to share that in a structured thread. This thread is mostly about the historical background and relation of the region to #Ukraine.
This region was important since middle age or even earlier. That's all because of the Dniester river, which is a communication route. It used to belong to Rzeczpospolita, Crimean Khanate, Cossack Hetmanate, the Russian Empire, and more. /1
Since the end of the 18th century and until 1918, it has been part of the RU empire.
Keep in mind that the region never had such an unusual form as today. It usually was split between other administrative regions. /2
Naturally, Pridnestrovia was also part of UNR and later the Ukrainian Soviet Republic. In 1924 Stalin created Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (MASSR) in UkrUSR. This was the turning point. Moldavians did not have a majority there. /3
Of course, Stalin didn't care about minorities. The reason for creating such autonomy was simple: to prepare legal reasons for annexing Bessaribia, which the USSR lost according to the Treaty of Paris(1920). /4
Moreover, the Soviet Union did not recognize Bessarabia as part of Romania. /5
And it happened relatively soon: in 1940, the Soviet Union annexed Bessarabia. This plan was part of the secret protocol of the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact. /6
Parts of newly annexed land were integrated into UkrSSR, and the rest turned into the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic (MSSR). /7
But what about an Autonomous republic on Ukrainian territory? It was dissolved, but a small part was given to MSSR. This small part is exactly what we call Transnistria right now. These were 6 districts of republican control. /8
Historians describe this as "mine" put in Moldova. And this mine exploded. The situation was unstable in the 1980s since there were strong national movements among Moldavians. Naturally, these did not happen in these 6 districts because Moldavians had no majority. /9
Moreover, there were opposite movements in Prydnistrovya. Keep in mind that the political elite was mostly non-Moldavian too. /10
In 1990 there were the first attempts to establish autonomy in Transnistria. But the situation escalated one year later. /11
New Union Treaty was scheduled for August 20th, 1991. Its idea was to reform USSR and give more autonomy to member states. Interestingly, Moldova would not be part of it, but Transnistria wanted to sign the treaty. Same with Abkhazia (a region in Georgia). /12
I don't understand how that should have worked out technically with one part of the country signing the treaty. Maybe I missed some facts; feel free to correct me below. /13
Due to the August Coup in Moscow, the treaty was never signed, and supposed members started to declare independence. Those who opposed the idea of the Union Treaty also used this situation to declare independence, and Moldova declared it on August 27th. /14
Transnistria had strong pro soviet views, contrary to the rest of Moldova. They supported the coup, and when the coup failed, they declared independence. Surprisingly they did it two days before Kishenev, on August 25th. /15
Both declared independence, and that is how the actual conflict started.
Interestingly, the Transnistria president Igor Smirnov went to Kyiv to negotiate about joining the region to Ukraine. /16
Some Ukrainian nationalists from UNA-UNSO volunteered to fight for separatists with the idea of Transnistria joining Ukraine in the future. /17
However, Smirnov was kidnapped and imprisoned by Moldovan special forces on the way there, spent some time in jail, and was released several months later. He was president of unrecognized republic for 20 years. /18
Those are his comments from 2011 given to media called Ukraina Moloda. /19
He wants to sound like they support Ukrainian culture a lot, but according to Hromadske, there was only one Ukrainian school in Transnistria in 2015. Also, we don't see the anti-war movement in Transnistria. I wonder why… /20
As said in the beginning of this thread, I will not go into details of the war itself. This was very similar to "DNR" and "LNR" creation. Soviet/Russian 14th army was stationed there, playing a desicive role in the war. /21
This war also froze with the agreement, which was never completely fulfilled.
End /22
Thanks, everyone, for reading. Please, retweet, like, and follow 😊 /23
Transnistria THREAD
I have read so many things about that "country" and would like to share that in a structured thread. This thread is mostly about the historical background and relation of the region to Ukraine. Also available on my Substack:volodymyrtretyak.substack.com/p/transnistria…
This region was important since middle age or even earlier. That's all because of the Dniester river, which is a communication route. It used to belong to Rzeczpospolita, Crimean Khanate, Cossack Hetmanate, the Russian Empire, and more. /1
Since the end of the 18th century and until 1918, it has been part of the RU empire.
Keep in mind that the region never had such an unusual form as today. It usually was split between other administrative regions. /2
As always an amazing interview with the Chief of GUR, Kyrylo Budanov, from 22.02.2023. He talks about Russian mobilization, Russia's weapon production capabilities, his opinion on Bakhmut, not accidental arsons in Russia, and the near future of the war. wartranslated.com/forbes-ua-inte…
My translation:
(Interviewer): Russia is currently on the offensive along almost the entire eastern front. Is this the big offensive that has been talked about for the last two months, or should we expect something else from Russia in March?
(Budanov): The big Russian offensive they are aiming for is already underway. But it's going on so well that not everyone even sees it - this is the quality of this offensive.
There is a message spreading around the pro-Russian channels which describes the salary and payment situation for #RussianArmy soldiers. Anger and discontent are growing, according to them.
My translation:
The situation is catastrophic with the money allowances of the SVO (special military operation) participants.
The scale of the problem is already obscenely huge. This problem already exists in every military unit. In every battalion, company and platoon.
Total non-payment of promised and due allowances.
Volunteer units such as BARS suffer in particular in this sense. People who were going as volunteers to the front in spring-summer of 2022 are marinated and strangled by bureaucracy.
Big interview with Ukrainian colonel Oleh Faydyuk, Commander of the 45th Separate Artillery Brigade. He talks about the soldiers training, the beginning of the war, the Kharkiv offensive, the needs of the UA army, and recent battles in Donbas. wartranslated.com/pravda-com-ua-…
My translation:
(Interviewer): Mr. Oleh, on February 24, there were 52 people in your brigade, which at that time had the status of a reserve brigade. Can you remember what the first days of the invasion were like for you?
(Oleh): I did not believe this invasion would happen until the last moment. According to the rules of engagement, the ratio of forces and means was insufficient to occupy a country like ours.
The Battle of Kruty took place on January 29 near Kruty railway station in the Chernihiv region, about 130 kilometers (81 mi) northeast of Kyiv.
/1
As Bolshevik forces of about 4,000 men, commanded by Mikhail Muravyov, advanced toward Kyiv, a small Ukrainian unit of 400 soldiers met them. The small unit consisted mainly of the Student Battalion, a unit of the Khmelnytsky Cadet School, and a Free Cossacks company.
/2
Over half of the 400 men were killed during the battle, which lasted up to five hours. Young people, like Spartan soldiers, died for the sake of their motherland in a struggle against foreign aggressors, and it was an example of their sacrifice and selfless love for their land
/3