Transnistria: The Micronation Where the USSR Never Died

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This video is #sponsored by Squarespace.
Source/Further reading:
Britannica, short overview: www.britannica.com/place/Tran...
BBC, Celebrating a nation that doesn’t exist: www.bbc.com/travel/article/20...
Britannica, history of Moldova: www.britannica.com/place/Mold...
E-international relations, good overview article: www.e-ir.info/2021/08/03/mold...
Balkan History on the ‘92 conflict: www.balkanhistory.org/transni...
NYTimes report on the 2006 referendum: www.nytimes.com/2006/09/18/wo...
Modern trade with Europe: globalsecurityreview.com/tran...
History, glasnost and perestroika: www.history.com/topics/cold-w...
NYTimes, Transnistrian time slip: opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com...
NYTimes, football in Transnistria: www.nytimes.com/2021/09/14/sp...
BBC, South Ossetia: www.bbc.com/news/world-europe...
BBC, Abkhazia: www.bbc.com/news/world-europe...
Carnegie Europe, the trials of unrecognized states: carnegieeurope.eu/2018/04/26/...

[@geographicstravel]

Check out Squarespace: squarespace.com/GEOGRAPHICS for 10% off on your first purchase.

[@jwenting]

squarespace. To web design what communism is to democracy.

[@hexadecimal5236]

You mentioned Moldova and then didn't do a segment on them? 🤔

[@DavidLopezTexas]

With respect Geographics, you forgot the ethnic Germans in discussing Bessarabia in this region because named as such.

[@TheOhioCountryboy]

I dislike any video with a paid promotion, and NEVER subscribe to any channel that does paid promotions.

[@masterroshi4714]

No.

[@mrvwbug4423]

I have a co-worker from Moldova, and he basically described Transnistria as a Soviet theme park

[@spacemanonearth]

Sounds about right, but an old broke down Soviet theme park, with old relics that are memories, while most look to the future as they recognize the past.. They know where their future lies, and it is not with Russia, the Soviet Union, nor USSR. And most live a simple life, and could care less about world events outside their community. Could be wrong but have seen many in this area, and heard some say they plan to join the EU or even NATO someday.

[@2hotflavored666]

@@spacemanonearth "and it is not with Russia, Russia, nor Russia."

[@spacemanonearth]

@@2hotflavored666 Did not speak of anyone fighting Russia? Was speaking of Moldova & Transnestria having many old Soviet and USSR memories and statues etc.

[@ExiSTEIN]

@@2hotflavored666 Is Liberty in Europe!

[@williammorahan4907]

Do they have a gift shop?

[@Bubbaist]

You should do an episode on Somaliland, the northern third of Somalia that became a self-declared nation in 1991. No one gave it much of a chance, but it ended up being one of Africa’s healthiest democracies, while the rest of Somalia was… Somalia. How they managed to achieve the relative success they did with no international recognition has been the subject of much debate. It’s a story that deserves to be told.

[@Philip_Taylor]

Yes this.

[@ambervasquez-keyes8523]

This please!

[@movingforward3030]

Second this!

[@Shaggrtoon]

"while the rest of Somalia was…Somalia" well said lol

[@gr8rw8r]

@@Shaggrtoon I can't wait to here that said in Simon's voice

[@gabrielcraciun2936]

To put the language thing to rest, I am Romanian and i can tell you that the difference between Romanian and Moldavian language is the same as between people in Texas and people in New York. It's the same language. Grate video Simon !

[@nnzrsinanovic2772]

Like Bosnia and Croatian they just have silly names for some stuffs 😅

[@ottovonbismarck4497]

Moldovans also speak slower, with a lot of russian slang. Yall speak like auctioneers. Overall, depending on where you are in Moldova youll either see basically romanian or Russian, with the mythical "moldovian" being the gradient between them. If i tried to speak in moldovian id just confuse a romanian, however a romianian would kinda not really make sense

[@ajmarecki]

@@ottovonbismarck4497So I know a guy who says he is from Moldova and left right after the fall of the Soviet Union. He says he doesn’t speak Romanian/Moldovan and only speaks Russian. Is this common in Moldova? Is he really an ethnic Russian? Are there Ethnic Moldovans that only speak Russian?

[@ottovonbismarck4497]

@@ajmarecki there.... are? kinda. I mean you can be ethnically moldovan and not speak the language. The problem is that its really rare for people to not know both, however it being before my time i cant really comment on it. All i know is that some people do struggle really hard with speaking romanian, so its probably not impossible.

[@xDemonkidd]

I’m a Texan and used to live with a New Yorker, there are tons of differences but not too many to make each other incomprehensible.

[@16thdemon]

If Paradox Interactive ever makes a game set in the modern world, you can bet that one of the achievement will be to reform the USSR as Transnistria.

[@Alexander-zt9kz]

It actually exists in the millennium dawn

[@raycearcher5794]

And then put a horse in charge

[@CoolGobyFish]

Transnistria (Pridnestrovie) isn't communist or Soviet. It's a capitalist country with a rightwing government. They use old Soviet Flag, but that's about it))))

[@E4439Qv5]

@@CoolGobyFish flags still count in map painter games.

[@commanderd8476]

@@CoolGobyFish The Soviet Union and just about any other communist states (at the time) were overwhelmingly socially conservative

[@Andrew-zq3ip]

Actually I'd love to hear about the economy.

[@josephschultz3301]

I mean, Simon was right, I was _more_ interested in the old and odd Soviet shit, but I'm not _not interested_ in the nation's economic situation. Given how they survive off of Russian hand-me-downs, it has to be quite the clusterfuck.

[@jessn.2665]

Yeah I want to hear about the economy too

[@blakee9690]

Ya, I do really want to hear about the two things he said we do t want to hear about.

[@sababugs1125]

"economy"

[@michaelthomas5433]

Okay, while in Russia ppl get a potato a day in Transnistria the ppl there have to share a single potato every day.

[@ljphoenix4341]

That Sheriff monopoly is actually kinda terrifying. To have that much power over pretty much every aspect of everyday life is never a good thing

[@patrickcloutier6801]

Maybe there's an O.K. Corral there, too.

[@1blackice1]

It sounds a lot like how banana republics were in south america.

[@zhejabello658]

It's the same thing in the West except we pretend they aren't monopolies.

[@Darkest_matter]

@@zhejabello658 like everything owned by Amazon

[@adonis7626]

"communism works, you just have to privatize it."

[@seasoncolorandpi]

A dear friend of mine is from Tiraspol. I had always considered myself a geographically aware person, but when she told me she was from “Transnistria”, I was so lost! Luckily I recognized the name Moldavia and I learned a lot from her about the history of that area.

[@user-tk7mb6yx2e]

Приднестровье подаренная румынам земля. Не пробуйте сунуться снова, это будет не92 год

[@xeon39688]

@@user-tk7mb6yx2e mad rusky

[@bo_d_n]

@@user-tk7mb6yx2e Romanians don’t need your poverty and love for communism , you’re safe in your totalitarian utopia.

[@limononeu9363]

@@user-tk7mb6yx2e Собака лаяла на дядю фраера...

[@stuartmcalister2772]

I used to work for a non-profit that worked in Moldova. I took a group of people to Dubasari, Transnistria in 2011. It really was like time traveling back to the Soviet Union of the late 80's. The Russian tanks at the border, the hammer and sickle flags, the statues of Lenin, and our hotel that seemingly hadn't seen any maintenance or cleaning since the wall fell, all contributed to the feeling of a place frozen in time. Our group was under constant surveillance, and they weren't even all that subtle about it. We were housed in a wing of the hotel that literally had no one else on it, except for one other man in a military uniform whose room was smack-dab in the middle of all of ours. My Moldovan staff person (who was noticeably nervous while we were there) was certain our rooms were bugged, and I'm sure she was right. Pressure was applied to the people we were working with in Dubasari, forcing changes in our activities, and customs officials refused to release some goods we had shipped in from Moldova for orphaned and vulnerable children until after our team had departed. At the end of our time there, as we drove back over the bridge to Moldova proper, my staff let out an audible exhale; relieved to have left Transnistria without any serious trouble. In spite of all of that, we had a wonderful time and met some lovely people. In my work, I've traveled to many places and experienced many cultures. I've had a lot of interesting experiences, and my trip into Transnistria is certainly one I'll never forget.

[@CoolGobyFish]

well, no shit. Dubossari is home to a stratigic hydro electric plant. a plant that Moldovians tried to take by force in 1992 war. what did you expect? As for Lenin statutes, they are in almost every post Soviet country in smaller villages and cities. Nothing really unusual.

[@akash_premkumar]

Where are you working????

[@stuartmcalister2772]

@@akash_premkumar Not working there anymore. Worked in Moldova from 2006 to 2017, but haven't been there since. Only went to Transnistria once.

[@sunnydisinfectant]

Cant wait for Putin to overtake Stalin for the record of most dead russians. He does the world a favor by making russians into cannon fodder! Go get those ruskies putin!

[@cerealkilla8930]

Sounds like N. Korea.

[@ride4life_motorlifestyle]

I clicked because i've been there recently, just passing through from Romania via Moldova to Odessa and quit confused when i came across a border where according to the map and GPS should not be one. Friendly people but a challenge because i needed a vignette for my motorcycle. They accepted the Moldovan Lei, Dollars and Euro's. As a Dutch i had Euro's but a 20 note was a bit too much. Long story short, a regular came by with a glove box full of 50 Lei bills and changed my €20 bill and when i got to the point when i could figure out the change rate it was a very honest change. When travelling to unfamiliar country's it's very helpful when you go without judgement and approach everybody as your equal in a friendly manor.

[@ThexBlackxKitty]

Dude. I'm from Moldova and have relatives in Transnistria in the countryside. Some years ago I went to a wedding in one of the big cities and it was eerie! The reception building was like every Soviet era public institution of my childhood (I'm Simon's age) yet completely modern. The atmosphere was complete with radio propaganda broadcast from poles in the street. They have such a monopolized financial system that you can't use normal bank cards that are accepted in every country, and their bank cards don't work on our side (or anywhere else). I know accounts of both Moldovan ethnics who got screwed over by kolkhozes (yes, they persisted long into the 90s) and Russian ethnics who don't speak a lick of Romanian - our official language - and sing praise to the efficient regime and prosperous economy. By efficient meaning police shooting inconvenient people in the streets, and by prosperous, meaning firing "Sheriff"'s cashiers on the spot for failing to provide a plastic bag first thing upon the customer's approach. Transnistria is a scary sh*t place. Thank you Simon and team for bringing attention to it.

[@CoolGobyFish]

you can't use bank cards because Moldova blocked it))) Strange that you don't know this

[@Darkest_matter]

@@CoolGobyFish so in that aspect it's like Iran or Cuba except Iran has their own version of bank cards that are not visa or MasterCard and only work in Iran.

[@CoolGobyFish]

@@Darkest_matter not sure about those countries since I've been there, but yes, in Pridnestrovie (that's the proper term) they have their own bank cards due to moldovia blocking them from using Visa/Master

[@CoolGobyFish]

@@rottingravensblood9106 you are describing every post soviet country)))

[@JohnHenryEden2277]

@@CoolGobyFish Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania: Are we a joke to you?

[@SoundShinobiYuki]

I actually had a college roommate who came from Moldova (I'm Canadian). He was a super smart guy who spoke four languages (Romanian, Russian, English and French) and was studying engineering!

[@LoganGalt8810]

I went there in 2018, after visiting Chernobyl. Bought some old Soviet era memorabilia, medals, maps etc. Fascinating place.

[@MoldycheeseJr]

Sounds great. How was the weather?

[@matthewestrada407]

I was there in 2018 also had a blast.

[@moralkombat66]

I'd like to visit chernobyl. This spot is definitely on my bucket list

[@YouTubesucksdonkeyballs]

I love the use of the term ‘move abroad’ when ‘moving abroad’ in this country means moving a town over in pretty much all directions 😂

[@whoeverest_the_whateverest]

Except for the direction along which the country is stretched (like Chile)

[@YouTubesucksdonkeyballs]

Or Russia’s Kaliningrad, only smaller ;)

[@TrineDaely]

I'm so used to it meaning moving overseas that hearing it used by European news sites catches me off guard every time. For those outside countries with a lot of landmass, I can only imagine how they feel when we say we can move hundreds of miles and only cross state lines (if that, depending on the state).

[@craigebtv]

Make sure you have a passport if your crossing a river on the way.

[@TimKyoutube]

I have been to Transnistria. It is such a trip. I said "hi" in english to lots of people and the looks were great. Definitely one of my favorite travel experiences. Their coins are made of plastic and very nefarious things go on there.

[@jayklink851]

Top exports are, com-block weapons and sex workers for European brothels (not always voluntary).

[@VonArmagedda]

Yeah, I guess they don't see lots of westeners there.

[@Perchanceworld]

Imo it’s better to just say “I’m from [ ] country” because hi just makes you look like a alien

[@srinarayan2687]

Their coins AREN't made of Plastic. That's inaccurate completely.

[@williamrosenbloom215]

@@srinarayan2687 is this a common rumor? It seems like maybe you've encountered it before.

[@MikoyanGurevichMiG21]

Simon Whistler is certainly not the first bald British man to be fascinated by the surviving Soviet-ness of this "country". Someone who's more bankrupt beat him to that a long time ago.

[@Iamtheliquor]

A soviet comment😂

[@alexschenewerk7436]

This comment wins

[@MattBellzminion]

Would his initials be G.P., by any chance?

[@Dneptun4o]

@@MattBellzminion its bald and bankrupt lol

[@IsntTheInternetGreat]

Please enlighten me?

[@rubenskiii]

Crazy to see Simon talk about a country my geography teacher hadn't even heard of when i told about my adventures there.

[@BridgesDontFly]

Teacher probably majored in gender studies with a minor in geography.

[@FinneasJedidiah]

@@BridgesDontFly wow you're so funny😐

[@lkjhfdszxcvbnm]

That's says a lot about your country's education system.

[@rubenskiii]

@@lkjhfdszxcvbnm How? It's the backwater of a backwater. It's not relevant at all to almost anyone in the west, east, south or north...

[@lkjhfdszxcvbnm]

@@rubenskiii that's no excuse for a geography teacher to be ignorante of the geopolitical situation of Eastern Europe

[@TheMAXAnswer]

Really loving these spotlights on some of the smaller nations or territories our world has to offer!

[@martinphilip8998]

Read An Atlas of Extinct Countries by Gideon Defoe.

[@joesnow34]

Good Video, I travelled there from Moldova in 2006 and found it very friendly and hospitable although almost no English was spoken. Statues of Lenin and T34 Tanks on plinths everywhere.

[@alanolley7286]

Different now of course many younger people in the cities speak English ,my lady friend out there learnt it at school in the late 90s.The T 34s are in a museum ( rumour has it Putin wants them back) and Lenin is not so prominent now.

[@dyawr]

@@alanolley7286 That's interesting 🤔

[@TA_Plus_Hemi]

I remember the 1989 Romanian Christmas Day pageant, or at least I saw it on TV. I was 11 that year and realized how lucky I was to be safe, well-fed and with family. It was more than likely the point at which I realized Christmas was not just materialistic BS or even spiritual. I also got to watch the speech where Nicolae Ceausescu knew his time had come and he was shook. It was a bit chilling as I was older and already knew the outcome

[@ekesandras1481]

It's time for some similar Christmas pageant in Russia. But Mr. P. is more clever than Mr. C. He knows that the masses don't love him. He would never risk getting booed at the Red Square, he simply doesn't hold such mass rallies. But the rest could be similar. Taking some helicopter to flee Moscow. Than heading to some army barracks, not knowing that those units already defected too. Short military tribunal, than up to the barracks backyard.

[@lelandunruh7896]

I visited Tiraspol in 2015. It was fascinating. The city was so boring, yet so interesting. I think it is the closest I will ever come to seeing what the aesthetics of the Soviet empire were.

[@ignitionfrn2223]

1:45 - Chapter 1 - Frozen in amber 5:25 - Chapter 2 - Lines on map 8:55 - Mid roll ads 10:25 - Chapter 3 - Forged in fire 14:15 - Chapter 4 - Old battles re fought 18:45 - Chapter 5 - Mafia state 22:35 - Chapter 6 - A forever (cold) war ?

[@TrevorCollin_]

my brain doesn't work properly and thank you for this

[@raycearcher5794]

A good story about how the collapse of the USSR is much more nuanced than a lot of folks think.

[@gawkthimm6030]

you mean, some places the Russians never left...

[@CoolGobyFish]

@@gawkthimm6030 most of the so called "Russians" in this area are ethnic Ukrainians, Germans, Armenians and Bulgarians. Moldovian Romanians don't differenciate because all those people are "Russian" to them since they speak Russian/Ukrainian.

[@h0lynut]

@@CoolGobyFish Thats not true. The majority identify as Russian and i rather take their word then yours because they are the ones whom lived there and ultimately refused to join Moldova or Ukraine

[@omarwilliams6729]

@@h0lynut 💯

[@dougsmith8430]

Had a give and take with my Niece (Nephews Wife) about this Geographical area and the current tragic state of affairs just this Morning,03/08/22. Her family comes from this region of the World and migrated to Chicago in 1992, and she is now in North Dakota. Thank you for this very informative look at Transnistria!

[@TheKevlarKitten]

Such an interesting video on a place I had never heard of! This is what makes this channel so great!

[@Ryu-hx5yy]

It’s really nice someone is talking about this nation because I never found much information about it even though it seemed like a great topic

[@christopherjohnrudma]

Went there in 2018, amazingly unique place, friendly people and a giant statue of lenin in the town square. They also have plastic currency

[@peterixon8708]

Excellent video. Really enjoyed the manner in which you delivered your content, plus I got a perspective on things I now realise I wasn't fully aware of, despite thinking I thought I knew those things. Well done.

[@stephanmccoll6813]

That was one of the best Geographic videos over watched ❤👏

[@thomasnorman7016]

Simon, you do some really excellent work that few others would even think to cover... Bravo!

[@Decybello]

You are aware, that Simon is only presenting it and very often have no idea on a subject he's talking about, as he mentioned himself on his other channels many, many times, ARE YOU?

[@bradlevantis913]

Wasn’t sure what to expect with this one. And again I’m glad I watched. Well done

[@noodengr3three825]

I got to visit this fascinating micro non recognized nation. We crossed from Moldova , spent 2 nights exploring it in September 2019. I visited the 2nd largest caviare factory and watched my 21 yr old Kiwi roomie drink a half bottle of vodka then get violently sick.

[@dunwichmotorsport4469]

Loved this piece, very informative as the situation unfolds.

[@nickmauldin8825]

Love watching these videos on microstates. Great job!!!

[@leonkriner3744]

As always great research, precise, factual, deeply analytical and interesting to watch

[@hehoosmeltitdeltit]

"I'm here to kick some kitty-cat ass and chew bubble gum... and I'm all out of bubblegum." That should have been the line Liam Neeson used on the bad guys in the Taken franchise. 😳

[@forrestchase899]

Awesome video. That was surprisingly interesting - I’d love to see more like this 👍

[@CartoonHero1986]

Watching in March 2022 Simon: What about its future? Me: ... ... *starts crying nervously *

[@theconqueringram5295]

Such an interesting story for such a small piece of territory.

[@loturzelrestaurant]

Know 'Oversimplified'?

[@Iamtheliquor]

@@loturzelrestaurant dude, cool.

[@jackof1]

A couple years ago I worked with a young woman who was the daughter of a prominent family in Chisinau. I asked her how many years she thought it would take before Moldova was completely rid of the Soviet past. She said 100 years, and she wasn’t joking in the slightest. Despite being born probably in the early 90s and having experienced Western life she was still totally convinced of the Soviet/Russian viewpoint. It was really staggering to encounter a young, wealthy, English-speaking semi-Americanized person who still has one leg planted in the 1970s Soviet Union

[@olliefoxx7165]

Look around at our degenerate, decadent culture in America. In California there are ten million dollar mansions with homeless camps across the street. We just ended a 20 year war in Afghanistan where we spent TRILLIONS of dollars and left $84 BILLION dollars of hi-tech mitary equipment in the hands of terrorist. With all those TRILLIONS spent on other countries our own southern border is in chaos, our infrastructure is crumbling, our own citizens go without Healthcare and we have an exploding homeless crisis and crime wave. Who in their right mind thinks we have the right answer or the best system?

[@Darkest_matter]

@@olliefoxx7165 let's get one thing straight. Don't EVER confuse *freedom fighters* with terrorists EVER again!

[@olliefoxx7165]

@@Darkest_matter OH, I see. One man's "freedom fighters" likes to kill innocent civilians, use terror tactics, despises human rights and the respect for invidual freedom and the other guys definition is correct.

[@badhombres1190]

Because not everything they said about communism was true, but everything they warned about capitalism was true

[@rick-be]

Brainwashing is hard to rinse away.

[@Newt.--.Jaeden]

The day Simon trims his beard is going to be a day remembered in history alongside all the topics he has covered

[@JimBiddle.]

Maybe he's going for the vagrant/transient look, he's nailed it.

[@knutedvardkjersem2988]

It can fit on either of his channels

[@nammajamma]

Future topic on megaprojects

[@michaelkuykendall789]

I’m kinda jealous of his beard.

[@duncancurtis1758]

Nice They Live reference

[@DonLorenzo]

Simon, in a similar vein, can you do a vid on The Gambia? Someone told me the width of the country (either side of a river) was decided by the range of a Royal Navy cannon at the time. Crazy.

[@MattBellzminion]

FYI, they renamed themselves without the article some years ago.

[@noodengr3three825]

I have visited the Gambia and yes the borders follow a given distance from the river. Other than English language is in use instead of French it is not very different than surrounding Senegal

[@andpeggy532]

My family vacationed in Gambia when we were living in Senegal in the early 1980s! Such a small country in such an odd place in the middle of Senegal.

[@howtomoscow4764]

My friend is from here. Also, I'm glad to see Simon do a video on this

[@jevinday]

yes theory did a video where they went to Transnistria and it literally made me cry, the people seemed ridiculously kind. and having a straight up Soviet experience in 2021 would be so insane!

[@Jae_TheFlash]

I watched that episode too and loved it! It made me want to go and visit the country.

[@JimTheFly]

I want to hug their new Grandma.

[@CoolGobyFish]

his exagerating. I live there now. It is NOT Soviet. and you will NOT get a Soviet experience. Yes, they still use old communist flag and coat of arms. But the country is 100 percent capitalist. Go to Belarus if you want to see socialism.

[@katanah3195]

I once ended up on some huge commune somewhere in rural North America, that was essentially this super weird USSR historical re-enactment, when I was a little girl. It's been almost a decade now and I don’t even remember what the place was called, but if you can find it, that would definitely be quite the odd modern day Soviet experience and it would probably be easier and safer than going to Transnistria.

[@kavky]

There's no one to arrest you and torture you for reading banned books and listening to Radio Free Europe so it won't be a genuine Soviet experience.

[@riverdaledragon]

As someone who is about to deploy to Romania soon, this was great information!

[@hellhound47bravo3]

This is much more information on Transnistira than I have ever heard before. Thank you.

[@neal_rigga90]

Seen this video where this dude went to transnistera and visited and the people there were cool af all but giving him the clothes off there backs. And it was frozen in the Soviet era,but was just wholesome altogether. One of the only videos to ever make a grown man tear up. Video was by: yes theory, check it out.

[@peterhall8572]

good to see something on youtube I wasnt aware of before, Well done

[@benyaakov6453]

New channel Simon? Good luck I just love your info!!!!

[@acosorimaxconto5610]

Great presentation of a complex subject... I will have to watch it at least 5 times to begin to understand it

[@conzmoleman]

are you learning disabled?

[@acosorimaxconto5610]

@@conzmoleman BS kremlin troll

[@jeremyzimmerman5603]

An instant historical classic - well done, Simon and team!

[@loturzelrestaurant]

Illuminaughtii also covers the Past nicely.

[@Chrisuperfly1]

Fascinating stuff, thank you!

[@pianomanhere]

This is fascinating. Thanks for this video !

[@Tingeltangelbob10]

What a great video! Very informative and well told. And regarding the cirumstances, with a whole new level of topicality.

[@andersjjensen]

That was a really thorough and respectful walk-through of the situation. Thanks Simon!

[@craxd1]

I don't guess they heard about the shock from Yeltsin, then, after he visited that supermarket in Texas, where he saw that it held more food than was available to the Politburo members back home. Worse, he spoke to a mother shopping at the store, who told him that she shopped about once per week, and there were no lines to wait in. They say that this was what almost broke the man, and started him off having, one could say, treasonous talk about his old government back home.

[@musaedm7378]

Highly recommend the video Yes Theory did on going to Transnistria I watched it before this by coincidence and it really helps paint the picture of what it's like over there.

[@user-xg8yy7yl1d]

It should make itself into a recognized historical site. It could rake in the tourism dollars in a few years if it keeps preserving all of its Soviet stuff. It wouldnt even be the smallest country.

[@ThexBlackxKitty]

It looks surprisingly modern and frontier police is a pain to get through, but we have a couple of Soviet museums in Moldova if you want to visit. I've been to an open air one. This one guy gathered old statues and monuments from around the country. Some of them are giant! I think he holds a Guinness record for biggest collection of Soviet memorabilia or Lenin statues.

[@CoolGobyFish]

It does have a lot of tourists. But to be honest, it doesn't have that much to see . Only 1-2 days worth of stuff.

[@_Ali.]

When we’ve past a Simon channel sponsoring another Simon channel I’m not even surprised anymore when I randomly click on a video and say “oh it’s Simon” anymore 😂

[@richiemelb]

That is another geographics video that I enjoyed watching.

[@fedethefico]

Very well done. Thank you!

[@Tarvos0]

A lot of the doom and gloom about Russian intentions really turned out to be spot on didn't it?

[@addieclark2026]

Yes it did.

[@v.emiltheii-nd.8094]

Ditto.

[@wolfswinkel8906]

Not really. They reacted to the threat of being completely surrounded by NATO by granting self determination to the buffer zone between them and NATO.

[@addieclark2026]

@@wolfswinkel8906 who let the Russian bots on KZbin?

[@wolfswinkel8906]

@@addieclark2026 yeah I know how it works: anyone whose opinions you disagree with gets labelled a "Russian bot".

[@StarfleetCommand71]

I live on and off in PMR. And the question about what will happen in the future is very interesting. As I see it, it will eventually collapse. And the reason is people. The PMR government say that 450.000 people live there. If you ask the people in PMR, they say it is much less. Probably 250-300.000. And the population is old. When you travel in PMR you do not see a lot of young people. When I am there, I live in a typical soviet apartment building. 12 stories high. 90% of my neighbours are 50++. In 10-20 years there will simply not be enough people there to have a working "country". Parents in PMR hire private teachers to learn their kids English and Romanian. They understand that the future is not in PMR. But in Moldova and the rest of Europe. The living standards in PMR are lower than in Moldova. And this gap will continue to rise as Moldova gets closer to the EU. PMR today is just a company run by Sheriff and some Russian oligarchs. And when the foundation of this money machine dies of old age, the whole thing will collapse. The people will not accept living in a poor non-existing country only because they can speak Russian there.

[@nealgray4071]

These videos are so good. Love Simon's delivery.

[@aabidn275]

Brooo I was waiting for this one!

[@oddda5956]

This video aged like milk and wine at the same time

[@caljaysoc]

I think a geographics about the former SSRs in general would be really interesting and timely. It would be cool if you could go into any official ties to Russia and about the battle over whose “sphere of influence” they fall in to.

[@johannjohann6523]

Great video, really enjoyed it.

[@udud7psy]

Finally! Bravo! Geographics team, Bravo!

[@Spacenugget9]

The story of FC Sheriff (the team from Tiraspol that beat Real Madrid in Madrid) is something else. Apparently pay was given by the owner each week in cash and if one was deemed not good enough one wouldn't get paid and couldn't complain.

[@The_Republic_of_Ireland]

YES! Finally this gets covered. Such an interesting place

[@sam4secretary]

thanks for making this--

[@multiyapples]

Very interesting and informative.

[@BrianKelsay]

Boy, there was a lot in this video I didn't know. Sad history, but cool that you could gather it all up to inform us. In future I can see Simon videos getting linked by local news station if we click "I would like to know more". I do recall mention of Bessarabia in some history class as a minor note regarding Ottoman Empire and some conflicts as it was broken up, along with Austro-Hungarian formation and break up. Both of those seemed like minor events in the greater overview of European history before 1900.

[@Bigbudd0045]

the Bessarabian gap has been used as a land invasion. Putin is delusionally still concerned about a land invasion of Russia so a big portion of invading the ukraine is about pushing through to moldova to secure control ot the Bessarabian gap.

[@792x33]

Superb video! Would love to see features on Liberland and Somaliland as well

[@seanmcerlean]

Thanks Simon. Very interesting.

[@andreeapstl]

Beautiful exposition of recent history! As a roumanian, I simply love this video

[@eduardogutierrez4698]

Hard to believe that a fooball club from this country was able to defeat Real Madrid

[@benallen7704]

Except... it's not a country.

[@kieronparr3403]

Awesome really

[@lucianboar3489]

@@benallen7704 it is in reality, doesn't matter if it's not recognised. But in football, it is united with the rest of Moldova. It's probably the only example of a separatist country that is smart enough not to split its football federation too.

[@ThexBlackxKitty]

It's quite easy to believe when you understand just how much money the Sheriff monopoly has. They can afford to sponsor anything they please.

[@lucianboar3489]

@@ThexBlackxKitty still, there are many more richer clubs in Eastern Europe. Sheriff might be controling a lot over there, but Transnistria is small and poor, in a poor corner of Europe, even if they have deals that involve business in Odessa, where I think the most cash would come from. But money isn't everything, you need to convince good players to come to an obscure club, in a very low rated league. And good players get other good offers. But they finally got the formula, with a manager and a group of competent enough players better than the sum of its parts.

[@MihaMoh]

I didn't expect to see this video in the KZbin recommendations, because I am from Transnistria myself. :)

[@GBBIII]

Thanks for the history and information on a place that may soon have historic importance...

[@johncgibson4720]

This is the better episode in a long time. The title looks intriguing, but the subject is quite dry as soon as you start watching it. But then if you stick to it and try to learn something from it, it turns out to be more enriching than most other videos.

[@YesYouAreAbsolutelyCorrect]

This is, surprisingly, a quite accurate take on the state.

[@grigiocrono5966]

Very good video. I am romanian and I visited Moldova, and whe speak the same language, with some regionalism words. Even in different parts o Romania whe have different word for example pottato. I arrived at the border of Transnistria different uniforms, and they speak russian.

[@Maxim-gj1xd]

eh in moldova is basiclly romanian mixed with some russian and some old words

[@Danko_Sekulic]

Moldovans are Romanians! End of story!

[@vernicethompson4825]

@@Maxim-gj1xd It seems to be a lot like the differences between Serbian and Croatian.

[@ericfrison1172]

Such a good video…thanks !

[@reserva120]

Nice Job by the way..Well done.

[@sherwyn94]

You should make a channel with the history of every country. Definitely would watch.

[@iulianhodorog9979]

A few inaccuracies* : 5:40 Bessarabia on its own was never a province of the Ottoman Empire, but Moldavia was. Bessarabia was called as such only after the Russians took it, before that there wasn't any kind of border on the Prut river. Bessarabia was simply a part of Moldavia (as you correctly state at 14:50), which was an autonomous region of the OE, alongside Wallachia. 6:30 Moldovans and Romanians are not exactly "ethnically close"... it's like saying Germans and Europeans are ethnically close. It's weird. The fact is Moldovans are all ethnic Romanians, though not all Romanians are Moldovans. Also, the language is not "similar", it is identical (like British and American English). 8:16 - this is outright false. The "slither of land" across the Dniester river" was never a part of any Moldova throughout history, it wasnt a part of Bessarabia during the Russian Empire days, so the Romanian army had no intention whatsoever to go there. The region you are talking about was made up by Stalin in 1924 as a ploy to continue claiming the Bessarabian region for Russia.

[@CoolGobyFish]

Romania tried to "liberate" Ukraine as well. In 1918 and in 1941 (with nazi help). Luckily they were kicked out of there. So yes, they wanted (and still want) land all the way to Odessa.

[@iulianhodorog9979]

@@CoolGobyFish Romania did not cross Dniester river in 1918 (talking about the video), and in 1941 you got it backwards: it was Germany, with Romanian help (and others), that went to invade USSR, not the other way around. Not even during the nazi period did Romania want any lands beyond Dniester. Transnistria was merely a trade-off for the North of Transylvania, not a claim on Romania's part

[@dyawr]

@@CoolGobyFish Romania is *not* a villain here. All Romania & Romanians wanted was *reunification* with their kin, not territorial gains of lands outside Bessarabia.

[@CoolGobyFish]

@@dyawr sure sure, is that why Romania is handing out passports in Bukovina Ukraine to everyone?

[@CoolGobyFish]

@@dyawr I am sure regular Romanians are fine people, but Romanian government should stay out of Bessarabia, it's not wanted here

[@AvokadoJoe]

Wow. Just wow. Until just now, i've never heard of this. Thank you!

[@HenryFrederick]

Excellent narration... Subscribed and liked...

[@ldvan100]

Thats a shit ton of Soviet Drama to wrap your head around all at once... No wonder those poor people are always fighting...

[@Petteri82]

Hey, Molotov-Ribbentrop sounds kind of familiar. - Finland

[@ciprianpopa1503]

What about WW2?

[@froggystyle642]

I'm probably not the only one to have requested this- happy days!

[@kosadinos]

Very enlightening video

[@ridiculousaistories4901]

Trasnistria has a huge tourist potential

[@God7odTaxationIsTheft]

Glad to see micronation getting more attention Hail from 7OD

[@jackjones9460]

Thanks for the history & present lesson.

[@yumbam5546]

Spot on description.

[@professor_kraken]

Well this is a pleasant surprise, I visited just over a month ago, it's a very interesting place.

[@DerptyDerptyDUM]

"Transnistria" sounds like it should come with a list of possible side effects.

[@4T3hM4kr0n]

"possible side effects include: Suka Blyat

[@wallachia4797]

@@4T3hM4kr0n haha I said Blyat so it's funny

[@anokata-kd8oc]

I know about Transnistria through my interest in micronations. Certainly I remember the FC Sheriff's entry into the Champions League too, I even want to buy a jersey from them but it's rather hard to find.