Transnistria, Moldova

DEX - Security Zone Explaining the Transnistrian Issue

The Transnistrian issue has never been a priority for Moldovan society. The exception were the first months of the war, after the Russian Federation attacked Ukraine, when interest in the issue temporarily increased. Generally, in polls, the issue is at the bottom of the list of Moldovans' concerns. Both politicians and the population seem to ignore the need to resolve the conflict, prioritising the economic situation. Transnistria evokes an injustice that many know about but very few understand.

This situation was perpetuated for decades due to lack of information. The Moldovan media has treated Transnistria superficially, covering it only at critical moments: kidnappings, killings, failed negotiations or exposed smuggling schemes.

In order to bring information about the Transnistrian conflict closer to the people ZonadeSecuritate.md portal launched a dedicated column on their website titled DEX of the Security Zone (DEX is an acronym for the dictionary) in 2021.

In the first season, 9 unique explanatory videos were published, information that is not found in the Moldovan media, such as:

1. Russian occupation troops - GOTR
2. Dnister Peacekeeping Mission and the Unified Control Commission
3. The administrative line
4. The Cobasna Depot
5. The 1992 agreement
6. The 5+2 format
7. 1+1 format
8. Paramilitary formations
9. Security Zone - what is it?

The appearance of DEX's second season in 2023 was possible with the support of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom. Our assistance helped to create the generic of the column, drawing attention to the two distinct elements of the Security Zone: the military posts of the Peacekeeping Mission and the illegal checkpoints placed by the Tiraspol regime, illustrating the post near the city of Vadul lui Voda and the one at entrance to the city of Tighina/Bender.

In time, the column has become one of the most popular on the website, designed to explain terms, events and documents related to the Transnistrian region.

In this piece, the most ambitious of the drafts agreed by all 5+2 format actors in the conflict negotiation process was reported. The "Berlin Plus" package – a seed of hope planted in 2016, but which did not bear fruit.

The "Berlin Plus" package contains several deals and measures negotiated as part of the Transnistrian settlement. It was so named because many negotiations took place in Berlin. The package covers eight key issues affecting the relationship between the two sides. The video recounted all eight deals and how they were implemented or not implemented. As a result of this analysis, it was found that the protocol decisions are not able to de facto oblige Tiraspol to respect its commitments, because there are no costs associated with unilaterally suspending the provisions of these documents. Thus, in order to create a similar initiative in the future, the application of penalties should be taken into account, regardless of which side does not implement the provisions or violates them.

This time a highly sensitive subject was targeted, Transnistrian license plates with the flag of the self-proclaimed republic displayed on them.

Very few people knew, seeing them on the road, about the legality of driving on public roads on the right bank of the Dniester with such license plates. The perception was that they had no legal status and that the circulation of cars with these names would be illegal. The DEX team explained the legal situation. They analyzed laws, regulations and the authorities' responses to the subject presenting it in an accessible and interesting form.

In short, neutral numbers are a mechanism for registering cars on the left bank of the Dniester whose owners avoid, intentionally or for objective reasons, obtaining national type of numbers in order to travel abroad. It is a framework created specifically for the phasing out of Transnistrian license plates, but it has provided the separatist regime in Tiraspol with an international identification mechanism. As a result of the negotiations, a protocol decision was transposed into a law passed by the Parliament - Law No. 17 of 2018 - and a new framework was created. In other words, Transnistrian numbers were not brought into the mainstream of normality, but a parallel normality was created. Thus, as of September 2018, cars registered in the Transnistrian region are accepted in international traffic on the condition that their numbers are exchanged for neutral ones, issued with the consent of the constitutional authorities.

This one was an exception, no notions related to the Transnistrian topic were explained, but a hot topic at that time: the customs duties that companies from the Transnistrian region are obliged to pay into the national budget in the context of economic reintegration, from January 2024.

This step has caused a stir in Tiraspol. The separatist administration claims to have been taken by surprise, and we have shown that the new Customs Code with the provisions that have stressed the illegal regime on the left bank of the Dniester was voted as early as 2021 and has been available online since its adoption.

As for how big is the "burden" of these taxes, because, as was reported in Tiraspol, the impression was created that the Transnistrian region will ace the apocalypse, this is an absolutely false perception. It has been proven that these customs duties are tiny and are not capable of jeopardizing the separatist regime.

Businesses in the Transnistrian region are still exempt from paying VAT and excise duties on the import and export of goods, and the customs clearance fee they were already paying has been waived for all.

The biggest dilemma for some is to give a definition to the territory on the left, but also to some places on the right bank of the Dniester, controlled by the separatist regime. We have proposed variants for: 'separatist territory', 'Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova', 'unconstitutional structures on the left bank of the Dniester', 'administrative line', 'employees of the structures of force', 'war for the defence of the independence and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova', 'Security Zone', and others.

All these videos have garnered hundreds of thousands of views on the platform's social networks, thousands of comments and likes.

This material showed how this system is structured, how it works, what is the legal basis and how it interacts with other systems, the Chisinau and Moscow systems.

It presented the 1996 Parliament Decision which decided that a temporary correspondent account in Moldovan Lei of the Tiraspol Cash and Settlement Center in Tiraspol should be opened at the National Bank of Moldova.

The document can only be found at the National Library in physical format and now online on the Security Zone, as it is no longer to be found at the Parliament. We found out that the act was burned after the protests in April 2009 together with other documents from the parliamentary archives.

Other aspects of the banking system were also exposed, in particular, how until 2019 Chisinau was paid for electricity to the power plant in the region in dollars, not in moldovan lei, as the law no. 62 of 2008 on currency regulation says - transfers within the country are made only in national currency, i.e. in moldovan lei.

In short, it is a complex combination of economic and political interests, maintained through hidden mechanisms and support from both inside and external sources.

Similarly, the subject of the Transnistrian ruble was also addressed.

All these materials are original and unique in their own way on the media landscape of the Republic of Moldova.

The column is available in VIDEO and TEXT format, with RO-RU translation, and can be found in the menu bar on the website.

Key concepts that are extremely important in the current social-political and economical context of the Republic of Moldova will be addressed in the following videos.

Through these journalistic materials, public interest in the subject can be increased by informing people about a security issue that directly concerns them, even if they are not aware of it.

Here are some key points that justify the need to sustain and continue the column, in addition to increasing the level of information:

1. Awareness of security issues:

    - The Transnistrian region is a major security issue for the Republic of Moldova. Correct and constant information of the population about this situation can contribute to raising awareness and mobilizing the society to support the resolution of the conflict.

2. Combating misinformation:

    - A dedicated and well-researched column can combat misinformation and manipulation by providing a trusted source for information about the region. This is crucial in a context where misinformation can negatively influence public perceptions and decisions, and given that the population in the region does not have free access to information, and there are two distinct information spaces between the two shores.

3. Sensitisation of the international community:

    - The heading draws the attention of the international and diplomatic community to the Transnistrian issue, thus facilitating international support and promoting a peaceful settlement of the conflict.

4. Stimulating dialogue and debate:

    - The column stimulates dialogue and debate in society on the Transnistrian issue, thus encouraging solutions through active involvement of citizens. Their participation in large numbers to the debate in the comments is a clear proof.

Thus, supporting such a column is essential for the creation of a well-informed society that is aware of its security problems and able to contribute to solving them constructively.