it is important to note, that despite the soviet-style aesthetics, pridnestrovie/transnistria is not a socialist state, having officially denounced and abandoned socialism back in 1991. the vast majority of the economy is owned by oligarch victor gușan and his sheriff corporation, who treats the place as his personal fiefdom, . most main government positions in the territory are are essentially appointed by gușan, with the people holding them basically functioning as enforcers of his will.

nevertheless, tiraspol still plays a historically progressive role in the current geopolitical situation, with the local russian military presence being a deterrent against further western imperialist expansion in the region, and the government’s policy of holding on to some semblance of internationalism, or at least inter-ethnic understanding, serving as an alternative to the increasingly intolerant and discriminatory policies of the pro-românian régime in chișinău.