The Armed Forces of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic[a] are the military forces of the unrecognized state of Transnistria. The Armed Forces fall under the leadership of the Ministry of Defence. The Armed Forces were created on 6 September 1991 to maintain the sovereignty and independence of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, in accordance with Article 11 of the Republic's Constitution.[2]
History
On 6 September 1991, the Supreme Soviet of Transnistria adopted a resolution which called for the formation of a Transnistrian military unit. As a result, the Transnistria Republican Guard (Russian: Республиканская гвардия ПМР) was formed. It was the direct counterpart to the Republic of Moldova's Republican Guard (Romanian: Garda Republicană).[3] Both were the predecessors to their respective countries armed forces. In its first major conflict, the guard repelled Moldovan troops from the city Dubăsari in December 1991. By the end of 1991, the organizational formation of the Transnistrian armed forces was generally completed. Shortly after the outbreak of Transnistrian War in March 1992, the People's Militia was created, having been supported and armed by the Russian Armed Forces14th Guards Army. By the end of 1992, all main structures of the Ministry of Defence and the General Staff were formed, including individual military units, government agencies, and specialized services. On 14 March 1993, personnel of the new armed forces took the military oath of allegiance to the country.
As of 2021, Transnistria is equipped mainly with Soviet-Era equipment including the T-64BV tank. Infantry fighting vehicles are the BMP-1 and BMP-2 with at least 15 in service as of 2021. APCs include the BTR family of APCs as well as over 70 MT-LBs, GT-MU, and BTRG-127 vehicles. Trucks are typically post-Soviet, Ural-375, GAZ-66, and Zil-131 trucks make up the logistics backbone. Rocket artillery is very important for the Armed Forces, given the limited number of conventional artillery Transnistria has. Rocket launchers include the Grad system, some of which were placed on ZIL-131 trucks. Transnistria also has a domestic rocket launcher industry which has built the Pribor-1 and Pribor-2 rocket launchers with 20 tubes and 48 tubes respectively; both systems are of 122mm caliber. Transnistria does have a small domestic drone industry which has been producing reconnaissance drones for the military since at least 2019. These have been jointly used with the Pribor-2 rocket launch systems in exercises to increase accuracy of the rockets via drone targeting.[4]
Structure
The armed forces are composed of 4,500 to 5,500 active duty soldiers, (with 15,000 - 20,000 personnel in the reserve).[1][5]
President Vadim Krasnoselsky
In order of precedence, the current military leadership is composed of the following:
General Staff of the Armed Forces – It is the commanding and managing body of the armed forces. It is tasked with enforcing military strategy which comes from the ministry of defense.A Mil Mi-17 similar to this one is used by Transnistria
PMR Honour Guard – Since its establishment on 6 November 1997, the PMR Honour Guard has taken part in the welcoming of honoured guests and festive and ceremonies. Notable commanders of the unit include Yaroslav Isak, Valentin Rasputin and Artem Chernichenko.[7][8]
General Staff Band – The band's musicians must have at least a year of experience in the musical services of the Russian, Moldovan, and Ukrainian armed forces. Their repertoire includes over 500 works by foreign composers. The band is led by Colonel Vitaly Voinov.[9]
On Republic Day and Victory Day, two-hour military parades of the Armed Forces of Transnistria is annually held on Suvorov Square, usually featuring over 15 military contingents overseen by the president, the Prime Minister and members of the Supreme Council. A historical mechanized convoy is usually assembled at the parade.[14] In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the two jubilee celebrations were merged on 2 September.[15]
The Military History Museum of the Armed Forces was opened on 13 November 1999 by President Smirnov together with Defense Minister Stanislav Hazheev. It has been visited by more than 20,000 servicemen, students, and tourists. The main attraction is the diorama "Storming the bridge over the Dniester", which depicts an episode of the battle on 20 June 1992. The museum is conventionally divided into two parts: exhibits and archival photographs. The central area is occupied by a ring in memory of fallen guardsmen.[19]
Sports Club
The Army Sports Club in Transnistria is a sports movement in the army that has the involvement of not only active military personnel, but also retired ones, as well as their family members, and pre-conscription youth. Almost anyone who wants to compete under the SKA banner are able to join the club. It was created as part of a return to the traditions of Soviet sports.[20]
Equipment
Military equipment of the Armed Forces of Transnistria
^Romanian: Forțele armate ale Republicii Moldovenești Nistrene, Moldovan Cyrillic: Форцеле армате але Републичий Молдовенешть Нистрене; Russian: Вооружённые силы Приднестровской Молдавской Республики, romanized: Vooryzhyonnye sily Pridnestrovskoy Moldavskoy Respubliki; Ukrainian: Збройні сили Придністровської Молдавської Республіки, romanized: Zbroini syly Prydnistrovs'koi Moldavs'koi Respubliky
Soviet Union
Transnistria