A four-month war followed and some 700 casualties later, a ceasefire was signed.
In fact, no other nation does.
Its flag still uses the communist symbol of a hammer and a sicklethe only country to do so.
A statue of Lenin stands in front of Transnistria parliament building in Tiraspol.
The people of Transnistria have naturally felt more Russian than Moldovan.
Even today, Russian-speaking people make up the largest ethnic group in Transnistria.
Russian subsidy, both direct and indirect, accounts fornearly half of Transnistrias budget.
Inevitably, there is a huge Russian influence on public life.
Transnistriaspeople watch Russian TV, kids in schools learn from Russian textbooks, and many pensioners receive Russian pension.
The lack of officially recognition does not bode well for Transnistria, especially the future of its younger generation.
Most youngsters are eager to emigrate abroad, to Moscow mostly.
Since the birth of the country, the Transnistrian population has decreased by more than a third.
The girl, Anastasia Spatar, had never traveled beyond Transnistria.
They can become kind of paranoid when they see a foreigner from the western world with a camera.
Many people dont relate with western values.
Instead, they admire Putin and hope that Transnistria will become a part of Russia, said Autz.
Like Justin Barton, Julia Autz too was struck by the permeated sadness in their expressions.
Despite the hopelessness of their situation, Autz found the teenagers and young people very receptive.
The Suvorov Monument, a symbol of Tiraspol.
Photo credit:Babak Fakhamzadeh/Flickr
Photo credit:Marco Fieber/Flickr
Photo credit:Clay Gilliland/Flickr
