Creative Commons

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, many regions in Caucasus such as South Ossetia, Abkhazia, Nagorno-Karabakh and Transnistria found the opportunity to break away and to create new independent regions or enclaves. However, this kind of de-facto independence, without international recognition, has caused many problems to the neighboring countries because in most cases a war took place, which resulted in many ruins and refugees. Most of the conflicts still remain unresolved. One such case is the theme of my thesis. I will study Transnistria's separation from Moldova, the latter having been a member of the Soviet Union. More specifically, I will focus on the geopolitical and on the ethnic dimensions of the conflict during the 20th century. So, the aim of this parer is not only to describe the above dimensions but also to highlight the complex historical course of Moldova from the beginning of its existence as Bessarabia until the present days.To day, Moldova is an independent country which consists of Transnistria and Gagauzia, two totally different entities that co-exist in Moldova’s territory. My paper is divided in three parts. In the first part I analyze Bessarabia’s and Transnistria ‘s historical course from antiquity to the First World War. In this part becomes clear how Bessarabia became part of Great Romania and how Transnistria became independent in 1924. In the second part, in the third chapter I analyze the Bessarabian treaty of 1920 and also I stress out the reasons for its cancellation. Afterwards, in the interwar period I describe the facts that led the Russians to conquer both Bessarabia’s and Transnistria. Also, I present their course during the soviet period by giving emphasis on the formation of the Moldovan identity on behalf of the Russians. In the third part I describe the creation of the independent Moldova after the dissolution of the soviet union in 1991.in the next chapter I refer to the Gagauzians who seized earlier than the Transnistrians. The next chapters are devoted to the Transnistrian conflict in the 20th and in the 21st c. In the end I analyze the situation in the present and I examine if there are any prospects for the resolution in the future. In this point, I would like to thank Dr Sfetas for all the help he offered to me.