This briefing, which Commissioner Phil Gingrey moderated, focused on the human cost of Moldova’s frozen conflict with Transnistria, its breakaway region, and the prospects for resolving this conflict that, at the time of the briefing, was two decades old. The term “frozen” entails settlement not by a peace agreement, but, rather, by an agreement to freeze each side’s positions.
The conflict began immediately following the dissolution of the former U.S.S.R. in 1992, when armed conflict between Moldova and Russian-backed separatist forces was frozen by mutual consent. The Moldovan government had no reasonable alternative. The frozen conflict in Transnistria also has had grave human rights and humanitarian concerns. So, the questions the briefing examined were how to resolve these concerns whether or not the conflict can be unfrozen.