On March 2, it is time to remember Russia’s war of aggression against the Republic of Moldova. A war that left the country without its constitutional territory, while the people on the left bank of the Dniester have remained trapped in a situation they have lived in for 35 years. Propaganda has made them believe in a largely false story about their so-called state. These observations belong to Dr. Ștefan Bejan, a historian and expert at the WatchDog.MD Community, and are presented on the 33rd anniversary of the War for the Defense of the Integrity and Independence of the Republic of Moldova, IPN reports.

The historian pointed out that the first gunfire did not occur on March 2 but on December 13, 1991. The borders of the Republic of Moldova were internationally recognized, including by Russia. However, on the left bank of the Dniester, a group of separatists, trained and equipped by the Russians, took control of institutions and fought against territorial integrity. When the separatists attempted to seize the city of Dubasari, Chisinau sent an intervention team from the Special Police Brigade "Fulger" to restore control over the locality.

Upon reaching the Dubasari bridge, Moldovan police officers tried to remove an illegally installed checkpoint. During the operation, separatist forces opened fire, killing four Moldovan policemen. On the other side, 20 guardsmen were killed. "No, this was not the actual beginning of the war with daily battles, but we now know who started shooting first," Stefan Bejan clarified.

The WatchDog expert explains why separatism flourished specifically in that region. In the late 1980s, the National Emancipation Movement emerged in Chisinau. On the left bank of the Dniester, the most industrialized part of the Moldavian SSR, a local elite made up of former Communist Party leaders, former KGB officers, and military personnel refused to accept the new realities. It was inconceivable for them to lose their privileges and become a minority in the new state.

During this period, the actions of the separatists were fueled by nationalist forces in Chisinau. Chauvinistic statements further strained relations between Chisinau and Tiraspol. Later, it was proven that some of these figures were acting on Moscow’s orders.

On September 2, 1990, the so-called "Transnistrian Moldovan Republic" was proclaimed in Tiraspol. Immediately, institutions under Chisinau’s authority began to be taken over, with their leadership replaced by the separatists’ own people, including police commissariats.

On the night of March 1-2, 1992, soldiers from the left bank of the Dniester and Cossacks attacked the Dubasari Police Commissariat, the last one still under Chisinau’s control. Thirty-four people inside the commissariat were disarmed and taken prisoner. Some managed to escape and fled to Cocieri, where they were pursued and attacked by Transnistrian soldiers. On March 2, Moldovan police officers from the Special Battalion "Fulger" crossed the frozen Dniester to assist. With their help, the separatists were repelled, marking the beginning of full-scale clashes.

"Although, officially, Russia had adopted the 'Sinatra Doctrine,' renouncing direct military interventions in socialist bloc states, without the 14th Army stationed on the left bank of the Dniester, there would have been no war. Moreover, Russia paid the mobilized Cossacks through various informal networks to come and fight in Transnistria," says Stefan Bejan.

The direct involvement of the Russian army forced Moldovan officials to accept peace conditions. On July 21, 1992, the Ceasefire Agreement was signed in Moscow. "Another clear proof that Russia is responsible for this armed conflict is the fact that the agreement was signed by Russian President Boris Yeltsin, not the separatist leader Igor Smirnov. An armistice is always signed between participants. If Russia did not take part in this war, why was Yeltsin the one who signed the armistice?" the historian noted.

According to him, the Moscow Agreement, often called the Yeltsin-Snegur Convention, de facto sealed the territorial division of the Republic of Moldova and turned the Transnistrian region into a burden around Moldova’s neck.