Russia is preparing to evacuate the families of Russian officers from Transnistria, according to a report by a report by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
"Armed formations of the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova are serving in an intensified mode. Preparations are underway for the evacuation of the families of officers of the operational group of Russian troops," the report said.
The situation in Transnistria itself remains tense following attacks that Russia has attributed to Ukraine, units of the operational group of Russian troops remain in full combat readiness.
The Interior Ministry of Transnistria, which remains unrecognized as a sovereign state, said it had allegedly found a Ukrainian drone with an explosive device and "prevented an attempted terrorist attack."
This report comes following increased tensions in the area, such as a recent attack on a government building in Transnistria's capital and reports from Transnistria that shots were fired from Ukraine into Cobasna.
The ongoing situation in Transnistria signals not only Russia's readiness to use the area as a potential launching point for further attacks into Ukraine, but also for possible aggression against Moldova, Ukraine's GUR claimed.
Ukraine has accused Russia of trying to mastermind false flag attacks in the region and has long worried about the breakaway region becoming the start of another front in the conflict.
"The terrorist acts committed on the territory of Transnistria were aimed at forcing the Transnistrian leadership to agree to expand the presence of Russian troops," the GUR claimed, saying that these attacks "will be presented as a threat to the region and a signal to Moldova's leadership to abandon pro-European policies. The main goal is to keep the region completely under Moscow's control, like it has been trying to do for 30 years."
While Transnistria has said they were not planning on joining the conflict, Ukrainian intelligence reports from the start of the Russian invasion indicated that part of Russia's plan was to create a land corridor connecting Russia, Donbas, Crimea and Transnistria.
Transnistria, also known as the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic and located on the Ukrainian border, is a de-facto independent but unrecognized breakaway state from Moldova formed in 1990.
Originally, it was formed as an attempt to remain part of the Soviet Union should the rest of Moldova achieve independence – an issue that soon became moot when the Soviet Union dissolved shortly thereafter.
According to Balkan Insight, Russia maintains around 1,600 soldiers in Transnistria, divided into peacekeeping troops and the Operative Group of Russian Troops.