Although March 2, 1992, is officially considered the day the Transnistria war began, the first armed clashes between Moldovan police forces and military groups in the separatist region were reported in the last months of 1991.
After the Republic of Moldova proclaimed its independence, on August 27, 1991, the relations between Chisinau and Tiraspol deteriorated considerably. In the Transnistrian region, located almost entirely east of the Dniester River (except for the town of Tighina and two nearby villages, Gasca and Chitcani), actions were intensified to replace the authorities and institutions subordinated to the Chisinau government with those under the control of the so-called Transnistrian Republic.
The Transnistrian separatists set up an important military force, consisting of the Republican Guard, militia, territorial rescue detachments, labor regiments and Cossacks. These troops, which according to some sources were about 20,000 strong, had been armed, equipped and trained by the 14th Army of the Russian Federation, deployed in the region.
The Republic of Moldova, at that time, did not have its own army yet. At the beginning of the war, its armed forces were replaced by several thousand police and volunteer detachments. The National Army of the Republic of Moldova was established, de facto, during the war.
The first fighting between the Chisinau-controlled forces and separatist troops took place on December 13, 1991, when an attack by Transnistrian guards near the Dubasari bridge took place. Four Moldovan police and 20 Transnistrian guards were killed in the attack.
March 1992. The beginning of the war
After several weeks of relative calm, on the night of March 1 to 2, 1992, guards and Cossacks attacked the headquarters of the Dubasari police station, the last police station still under Chisinau's control. 34 people who had taken refuge inside the police station were disarmed and taken prisoner.
Authorities and police from Dubasari and neighboring localities who had managed to escape withdrew to Cocieri, a town that became a resistance center in the fight against the separatists in Tiraspol. On the evening of the same day, March 2, a special police detachment from Chisinau crossed the Dniester on ice to come to rescue of those who had taken refuge in Cocieri. Guards and Cossacks attacked the village of Cocieri, but were driven back.
In the first days of March 1992, the Transnistrian forces entered the village of Cosnita, another locality in Dubasari district, attacking the 15 Moldovan policemen who, in turn, opened fire, managing to repel the attack. On March 13, 1992, the guards attacked Cosnita again, killing a police officer and injuring several others. On March 14, 1992, the Transnistrian forces blew up the bridges over the Dniester in Vadul lui Vodă and Dubasari. The Moldovan troops near Roghi were attacked, and15 people were killed. During the night, the villages of Cosnita and Gura Bicului were attacked with mines, grenades and missiles. The fighting continued throughout March.
During the same month, President Mircea Snegur and the Chisinau Parliament protested and called on the international community, denouncing the aggression committed by the Russian 14th Army on the territory of the Republic of Moldova. Although Moscow rejected the allegations, it continued to openly support the separatist regime in Tiraspol.
A ceasefire agreement was signed on March 24, 1992, followed by an exchange of prisoners.
Five days later, on March 29, 1992, the then Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova, Valeriu Muravschi, called on the Transnistrian separatists to lay down weapons within 48 hours, but they did not comply.
April 1992. The Russian ultimatum. Separatist attacks supported by Moscow
On April 1, 1992, the Moldovan police tried to free Tighina, controlled by secessionists.
On April 2, 1992, the commander of Russia's 14th Army, General Yuri Netkachev, sent President Mircea Snegur an ultimatum, requesting that Moldovan forces move 15 km away from Tighina.
A new ceasefire agreement was signed in Chisinau. Chisinau would be the only party observing the agreement.
Throughout the month of April, several attacks took place in the areas of Tighina, Pohreba - Cocieri, Cosnita - Dorotkaia, Pohreba - Roghi, Kindergarten, Leontova, Varnita, Misovca, Bacioc, Chitcani. The Moldovan troops were attacked with rocket launchers and missiles. Mines and missiles were also launched on localities, civilians, dams, television relays, radio stations. Roads were mined and bombed. On April 5, 1992, 20 Russian armored vehicles entered the city of Tighina, flying Russian Federation flags.
Meanwhile, the quadripartite negotiations between the foreign ministers of the Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russia and Ukraine, which had started on March 23, continued.
A foreign ministers’ meeting was held on April 6, 1992, and the participants adopted a declaration against the involvement of the 14th Army in the conflict, which also stated that the Moldovan authorities were to secure the rule of law throughout the Republic of Moldova.
A working group was set up in mid-April to defuse the situation in Tighina, disarm paramilitary formations, demine the area, and for the Moldovan police and the separatist militia in the city to ensure order. At the same time, it was decided that 400 observers, representing the four states, would monitor the 262 km-long front line separating the Moldovan troops from the separatist forces.
By May 15, though, only the Moldovan and Romanian observers had reached the area.
May 1991. Russia gets involved in the war, on the separatists’ side
On May 4, 1992, an agreement was signed at Gura Bacului regarding the withdrawal of the armed forces, but during the night, the separatists blew up the nearby bridge over the Dniester. Cocieri, Cosnita, Gura Bacului, Dragălina, Dubasari-Pod and Roghi were attacked the following days.
The crisis deepened after General Netkhakov received orders from Moscow to prepare the units of the 14th Army for battle. Russian tank and artillery units left the Tiraspol garrison, heading for Dubasari, and joined the separatist troops. The localities of Cosnita, Cocieri, Corjova, Holercani, Molovata, Ustia, Zolonceni in Dubasari district were attacked along the way. Violent attacks continued until May 26. The Moldovan troops managed to resists most of the attacks.
President Snegur protested the aggression of the Russian army. Moscow claimed it was not involved in destabilizing the situation in the region.
June 1991. The battle for Tighina, the bloodies of all
In the first half of June, the separatists’ attacks intensified in Tighina, Cocieri, Cosnita, Corjova, Dubasari, Dorotcaia and Pohreba. At the same time, those who remained loyal to the Chisinau authorities were being threatened and persecuted. During this period, members of the Ilascu group - Ilie Ilascu, Stefan Uratu, Tudor Petrov-Popa, Andrei Ivantoc and Alexandru Lesco - were arrested in Transnistria, under the charge of terrorism.
Against the background of these attacks, the authorities in Chisinau seemed to give in to Russia’s pressure and become increasingly conciliatory with the separatists in Tiraspol and Moscow. Moscow kept accusing Chisinau of aggression and attempts to exterminate the Slavic population in the region, and Romania was accused of supplying weapons to the Republic of Moldova.
Despite Chisinau's hesitations, the bloodiest fighting of the entire war took place in June, in particular in Tighina.
On the morning of June 20, the city was largely under the control of the Moldovan troops. 14th Army tanks tried to force the bridge from Tiraspol to Tighina, but were stopped by Moldovan forces. For two days, heavy weapons were fired at Tighina. At the same time, the localities of Dubasari, Cocieri, Cosnita were also attacked. More than 200 Moldovan fighters lost their lives in the fighting over that city, and another 300 were injured.
July 1992. The end of the war. 30 years on, the frozen conflict is there to stay
The war officially ended on July 21, 1992, when the presidents of Russia and of the Republic of Moldova, Boris Yeltsin and Mircea Snegur respectively, signed a ceasefire agreement in Moscow.
The signing of this agreement seems to have been frustrating for some of Chisinau's partners, because before June, Moldova had pleaded for an international peacekeeping mission and a broad involvement of international organizations, to later drop position and accept Russia’s stand. Meaning that, in the conflict zone, peacekeepers were introduced consisting only of soldiers subordinated to Tiraspol, Russia and Chisinau, while Romania was excluded from this process.
After all, the only international body directly involved in settling the conflict was the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which obtained the status of mediator. Russia and Ukraine would get the same status. Subsequently, the United States and the European Union joined the negotiation process, but only as observers.
Today, 30 years since the 1992 war, the Republic of Moldova has no control over the Transnistrian separatist region, which continues to declare itself an independent state. Only a few localities on the left bank of the Dniester, including Cosnita and Cocieri, are still under Chisinau’s control. In addition to the Transnistrian armed forces, there are about 1,500 Russian soldiers in the region and an impressive arsenal of weapons and ammunition in the town of Cobasna, which has been there since the Soviet era.
