Is Pridnestrovie a country?

Pridnestrovie declared independence in 1990. As per the declarative theory of statehood (prevalent in international law), that act made it a separate independent country — the same way that neighboring Moldova's Declaration of Independence marked the founding of the independent Republic of Moldova and freed it from Soviet Union rule.

Statehood is independent of recognition by other states: The first sentence of article 3 of the Montevideo Convention explicitly states that "The political existence of the state is independent of recognition by the other states."

The requirements of the Montevideo Convention for the state to be considered a subject of international law is that it possesses the following qualifications: Permanent population, defined territory, government and the capacity to enter into relations with the other states. The latter is the truest test of sovereignty and basically means that the country is not governed as a protectorate by another country.

The most basic test of statehood is to determine to what extent a country is truly sovereign in one or more of three types of sovereignty: Juridical sovereignty, Westphalian sovereignty and domestic sovereignty.

• Juridical sovereignty and independence. In Pridnestrovie, the law of the land is our own, starting with the most basic document, the Constitution, and all the way to detailed regulations such as municipal building codes or rules concerning environmental protection. No laws from Moldova or any other country are in effect in Pridnestrovie.


• Westphalian sovereignty. Pridnestrovie's political organization excludes external actors from authority structures within the territory. Like in other sovereign European states, the government is elected by its citizens. There are no outside governors, pro-consuls or outside rulers in the government.


• Domestic sovereignty. The formal organization of political authority within Pridnestrovie is completely in the hands of the citizens of the country itself. The democratically elected government of Pridnestrovie controls its own borders and has the full ability to exercise effective control of its own polity within its borders as well.

With flying colors, Pridnestrovie passes the test: By all objective measures, it is a free and separate independent country which is fully in control of its own sovereignty. So what's the solution to the Pridnestrovian problem?

The first step is to recognize that there isn't a "problem" but only an unwillingness to recognize the obvious: That when the former MSSR dissolved, it split into two separate, independent states, just like the divorce of the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
In the case of Moldova and Pridnestrovie, one of them is recognized and the other is not. The logical conclusion, of course, is just to bow to reality and recognize what is already an undeniable fact of life ... that both states exist, and that the both have the right to be recognized as valid, legal entities.
Once that is done, everything else falls into place. They can work out bilateral agreements under the established framework of international law and the "problem" of Pridnestrovie will be a thing of the past. However, until realism sets in and recognition of Pridnestrovie is obtained, the socalled problem can't be solved in any meaningful, lasting way.

Communist-ruled Moldova is the only country in the world which is strongly opposed to recognition of Pridnestrovie. Moldova's politicians can not fathom giving up their unrealistic claim on Pridnestrovie: A country which, although it has only 10% the landmass of Moldova, would represent 40% of its GDP and a whopping 90% of its power production. But as former Speaker of the Pridnestrovian Parliament, Grigory Marakutsa (an ethnic Moldavian from Pridnestrovie), said on December 19, 2005, “Moldova should lower its ambitions and not hope that it will be possible to rule Pridnestrovie by giving orders. If they try, nothing would come out of it, and the settlement process could be drawn out to the end of time."

Compared to Moldova and many other "problem states" of the world, Pridnestrovie is in many ways a more healthy, more real state despite the fact that Moldova was quicker than Pridnestrovie to seek international recognition.
In his book "Political Construction Sites: Nation-Building in Russia and the Post-Soviet States" analyst Pål Kolstø points out that —
" - A 'state' in the full sense of the word does not appear simply because of political proclamation of independence or international recognition. A true state must have control of its own frontiers, have a monopoly of coercive powers on its own territory, be able to collect taxes and tolls, and so on."

According to this definition, Pridnestrovie is one of the more successful examples of nation-building in the freedom of the post-Soviet world. It's people are bound together by a shared ideal in the separate nationhood, to the point where (as the OSCE reports) the ethnic Moldavians who live in Pridnestrovie have no wish ever to join Moldova and are instead firmly in favor of the continued existence of a free and independent Pridnestrovian nation. The long term prospects for Pridnestrovie look good. As Kolstø puts it:
" - If a state is to remain viable in the long term, it is essential that its people believe they have a common identity and a common destiny. They must feel linked together by allegiance to certain shared values, as well as to the same shared symbols and institutions. This need not imply that everyone must feel culturally identical. But what IS necessary is a broad agreement as to the politicogeographical map of state legitimacy and the principles underlying its structure."

Pridnestrovie, although small, is a proven entity. Like David against Goliath, it is the little country that faced off a nation ten times as big ... and discovered that with determination, anything is possible.

Pridnestrovie today is a strong and healthy state. There are two ways to understand the strength of a state. You can look at its institutions. Can it raise taxes? Does it have adequate health care? Do the structures of state work? Or you can look at the idea that holds the state together. Is there a consensus on who is a member of the state, and who is not? Do people understand the reason for the state's existence and agree with it?
On both counts, Pridnestrovie is strong. Pridnestrovskaia Moldavskaia Respublica has well-established state structures: its institutions have a positive impact on the individual. The idea behind it is clear, too.

To defend itself against Moldovan claims, Pridnestrovie has proposed a democratic solution: A vote on the future of the country. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe agrees and on 16 September 2005 stated that "any solution must accord with the popular will as expressed in fully free and democratic elections."

Strictly speaking, a referendum shouldn't be necessary to prove the legitimacy of Pridnestrovie as a nation. Because by all objective standards, Pridnestrovskaia Moldavskaia Respublica is as real a country as any. But the people of Pridnestrovie still welcome a vote, not least because it will send a message to Moldova's politicians to wake up and smell the coffee: Stop playing land grab politics that have no historical basis, and just let the Pridnestrovians live their lives in the sovereign and independent country that they themselves have built, free from Moldova's meddling and outside interference.

WHAT'S RELATED: Background analysis: PMR's sovereignty in international law Stronger international ties to secure Pridnestrovie's place in the new Europe 4 pillars of Pridnestrovie's statehood Facts and consequences of international recognition Statehood: Nation building achievements more...

EXTERNAL LINK: State sovereignty of PMR under international law (pdf)