Overview
- The Kremlin decree, signed Friday, lets adult residents of Transnistria apply for Russian passports without language, history or law tests and without the five-year residency requirement.
- Moldovan leaders condemned the step as a threat, with President Maia Sandu warning it could feed Russia’s war effort and the prime minister weighing steps that may include summoning the Russian ambassador.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the change signals a claim on the region and tasked his foreign ministry with coordinating a joint assessment and response with Moldova.
- Transnistria’s authorities and Russia’s embassy praised the simplified path as protection for “compatriots” and urged a return to formal talks between Chisinau and Tiraspol.
- Transnistria hosts about 1,500 Russian troops and many residents already hold Russian passports, reflecting a wider “passportization” playbook seen in Abkhazia, South Ossetia and occupied parts of Ukraine.