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Voters celebrate with PMR's red-and-green flag after the 17 September independence referendum

TIRASPOL (Tiraspol Times) - In a motion passed by parliament Wednesday, Pridnestrovie will ask Russia, Belarus, Ukraine and other CIS countries to recognize the Pridnestrovskaia Moldavskaia Respublica as a sovereign independent state.

The appeal is made in an address by PMR parliament to the Russian State Duma, the Belarusian National Assembly, the Ukrainian Supreme Rada, the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly. In passing the address, the MPs note that their request are based upon the free will of the voters, as expressed democratically in the independence referendum held on September 17.

The region's parliament urged assemblies in Russia, Ukraine and other former Soviet republics "to initiate the procedure of recognizing the independence of Pridnestrovie."

"In conditions of political uncertainty and continuing economic pressure, Pridnestrovie used the institution of direct democracy, which is what a referendum is, to express ways [that] Pridnestovie can develop," the document said.

" - Deputies voted unanimously in favor of the appeal, which asks for the view of the Transdniestrian people, as expressed in the referendum, to be taken into consideration," the parliament's press secretary, Natalya Butko, told Reuters.

According to final data, 78.6% of voters, or 310,169 residents, participated in the referendum which was called free and fair by 130 international observers who were present. The referendum asked voters:
1. Do you support the course towards the independence of Transdniester and subsequent free association with the Russian Federation?
2. Do you consider it possible to renounce Transdniester's independent status and subsequently become part of the Republic of Moldova?

97.2% of the voters supported their republic's independence and free association with Russia. Only 1.9% of citizens voted against it. 94.6% of residents voted against renouncing independence and joining the Republic of Moldova; 3.3% voted for it.

Recognition proposal in Russia's parliament

On October 6, the Russian State Duma recognized the results of Pridnestrovie's 17 September referendum in which more than nine out of ten voters preferred independence against unification with Moldova. This was based on the presence of election observers from the Russian parliament during the plebiscite, in contrast to Moldova, the USA, the European Union, the OSCE and other organizations and countries, which did not send observers and which failed to recognize the outcome of the referendum.

Following the recognition of the result, three parties in the Russian Parliament have now asked to start the diplomatic procedure necessary for recognizing the independence of the Pridnestrovskaia Moldavskaia Respublica (PMR), informally known as Transnistria or Transdniester. The steps were led by representatives of Rodina and LDPR, the party of right-winger Vladimir Zhirinovsky. Vice president of this forum, Serghei Baburin, drew up a statement draft in this respect.

As reported by Russian news agency Regnum, the PMR Parliament's Committee on Education, Science, Culture, and Childhood Chairwoman Olga Gukalenko commented on the recognition at a press conference in Tiraspol, the country's capital:
" - On Friday, the State Duma voted to recognize the referendum as legitimate and that the Russian Federation should take into account the free will of the people of Pridnestrovie," said Gukalenko.

Historically, Pridnestrovie has never been part of an independent Moldova. It proclaimed its independence from the MSSR, forerunner to today's Moldova, on 2 September 1990. One year later, when the Republic of Moldova was born, armed clashes between Moldova and PMR ensued. They were ended in mid-1992 by the intervention of Russia, which brokered a ceasefire between the two sides and helped establish an multinational corps of peacekeepers. Based on an agreement signed with the president of Moldova, Russia has supplied just under a third of all international peacekeeping troops since that date. (With information from IPN, Reuters, Regnum)