Too small to be a country?

Worldwide, out of more than 200 countries, PMR ranks 166 in terms population. (Click for larger image)

TIRASPOL (Tiraspol Times) - Pridnestrovie, also known as Transnistria, is a tiny little place, especially when compared to next-door neighbor Ukraine, one of the largest countries in Europe.

But is Pridnestrovie too small to stand on its own? Compare with other countries in the world, and an answer emerges.

In mid-2006, Montenegro declared independence with a population of 620,145. The Pridnestrovskaia Moldavskaia Respublica has a population of 555,000 people and covers a territory of 4,163 square kilometers.

On a list of countries, ordered by population, more than 200 countries appear. Pridnestrovie is, this year, at spot number 166. That is one step below Montenegro, the world's newest member of the United Nations, which holds spot number 165.

In terms of population, Pridnestrovie is almost double the size of Iceland (296,000) and Belize (283,000), and even larger than Luxembourg (468,000).

Below Pridnestrovie are more than thirty other states, all smaller but functioning well as separate, independent countries. In fact, scores of UN members have population sizes below Pridnestrovie, which has has more than fifty times the population of the smallest UN members, Nauru and Tuvalu.

Territory: Twice the size of Luxembourg

When it comes to territory, Pridnestrovie positively pales next to huge Ukraine. It has a size of only 4,163 square km. But while small, that is still six times larger than Singapore (693 km²) or Bahrain (665 km²), and nearly twice the size of Luxembourg (2,586 km²). All three are successful independent countries, and members of the United Nations.

What's more, as Pridnestrovie.net reports, you could fit two thousand Monaco's inside Pridnestrovie. A couple of recent UN members, Nauru and Tuvalu, are two hundred times smaller than Pridnestrovie.

There is one more twist to Pridnestrovie's territory. It is extremely "squiggly." Based on the "squiggliness"-index of its borders, Pridnestrovie has one of the world's best claims to independent statehood. According to a recent study by two Harvard scholars, so-called squiggly borders play a bigger role in statehood viability than diplomacy or politics. Tiny Luxembourg, similar in border composition to Pridnestrovie, but almost half the size, made it to the top of the study's list.

Economic viability as a small country

Pridnestrovie is small, but is it too small to stand on its own? Based on nearly two decades of independence, an answer emerges. Ever since it declared independence in 1990, Pridnestrovie has been able to survive, mostly based on exports from a well-developed industrial base which was left over from Soviet times.

Back when Pridnestrovie was part of the Soviet Union, it was the most industrially developed part of the MSSR, a union republic. Heavy industry is a big export earner, and after recent market reforms and privatizations, Pridnestrovie now has commercial relations with a total of 99 countries in the world. The West is a big export market for PMR. The Tiraspol Chamber of Commerce and Industry has close ties to its sister organization in Leipzig, Germany, and much of the country's steel production goes to American buyers.

A small size does not appear to be a barrier to an economically successful nation. Sometimes it may even help. Luxembourg, half the size of Pridnestrovie, is the richest country in the world per capita. According to 2005 figures, with a GNP per head at purchasing power parity of US$55,600. GDP in 2005 was US$31bn. Unemployment is low. A Eurostat survey in June 2004 recorded that Luxembourg's residents enjoy around 208% of the EU average GDP per capita.

In an analysis of Pridnestrovie, the British publication The Economist reached the conclusion that the country "controls territory and (an) economy capable of standing alone." The same article also stated that based on historical grounds alone, Pridnestrovie has a claim to separateness.

There are different ways to look at what makes a country large enough to be a viable separate nation. One way is to compare the population with other countries in the world, another is to compare land-mass, and the third method is a comparison of economic viability to stand alone. All three are factors where Pridnestrovie fall well within the standards of other contemporary states.

As an independent sovereign nation state, it would seem that Pridnestrovie has enough territory and enough inhabitants to pull its own weight. It also has a strongly independent-minded population with a will to see the young country succeed on its own.

" - If others can do it, with less land and a smaller population than us, then so can we," says Petru Gladchi, a civil society activist in Tiraspol.

Based on a cold comparison of the numbers alone, it would seem that he is right.

See also:
» "Honey, I Shrunk The Country"

On the web:
» Pridnestrovie.net: Pridnestrovie compared to other countries
» Wikipedia.org: List of countries by population