As little as 1,000 Russian troops left in Transnistria, Zelensky says

Russia has greatly reduced its troop presence in Transnistria, leaving only 1,000-1,500 troops in the region, President Volodymyr Zelensky said at the Munich Security Conference on Feb. 15.

Russian-controlled Transnistria has hosted Russian forces for decades following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Russian troops have guarded the region, stalling any attempts for reintegration with Moldova.

"There were 5,500 or 6,000 (Russian troops), now there are far less," Zelensky said, according to Kyiv Independent journalists attending the conference. "We believe that there are about 2,500 troops left there today. To be honest, I believe there are (closer to) 1,000-1,500 Russians left."

Russia "withdrew several thousand" troops, relocating from Transnistria to aid in Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Zelensky said.

The Russian troops left in Transnistria no longer guard the Russian-controlled region like they did before, Zelensky added. "Today they are guarding warehouses with weapons," he said.

"They took some of them (Russian troops) and took them out. They took them out, most likely, by plane via Chisinau," Zelensky concluded.

Amid Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, energy security in Russian-occupied Transnistria have remained in limbo, following the termination of Russian gas transit through Ukraine in January. The EU recently offered financial assistance to Tiraspol, which they rejected.

Russian gas deliveries to Transnistria have long been considered crucial to Russia's control over the region.

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The Kyiv IndependentOleg Sukhov