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Phonecard from Pridnestrovie showing the statue of general Suvorov, a local hero. (Archive)

TIRASPOL (Tiraspol Times) - In Tiraspol, the capital of Pridnestrovie, all local calls from public payphones are now free. You do not need coins or a phonecard: Just locate a public phone and, if your call is within the city, you can make the call at no cost to you. You must still pay for long distance calls.

As an independent country, the authorities in Pridnestrovie are in charge of the nation's telecommunications service infrastructure. The company handling telephone communications, Tiraspol Telecom, issues its own phonecards.

In July 1998 the first phonecards series were issued in Tiraspol. The cards are made independently of Moldova's phone system, with a technology more advanced than that which is used in Moldova. Series contains 3 cards: 30 minutes, 60 minutes and 120 minutes.

Pridnestrovie, also known as Transnistria, declared independence in 1990 and has been a de facto sovereign state ever since. Its government and public structures are wholly independent of Moldova.