Moldova has urged Moscow once again to withdraw soldiers stationed in the country's Transnistria region. "We've been calling on international partners but also to Moscow that they withdraw these troops so that we can further enjoy the full integrity of the country," Moldova's interior minister Ana Revenco told CGTN Europe.

As many fear the Ukraine war could expand to Transnistria, CGTN had a rare opportunity to visit the media-restricted region. Russian soldiers are guarding the checkpoints at the Nistru river which separates Moldova from the breakaway region. In the past months, several journalists have been detained by security forces while reporting on Transnistrian ground.

"Tiraspol is like a Russian city," says Mihail Garbuz while showing us Transnistria's biggest town which is home to about 150,000 inhabitants. Not just Russian soldiers, but also Russian monuments decorate the sides of the scrupulously clean streets.  

Garbuz's opposition party 'Moldova's Patriots' has been pushing for both Transnistria and Moldova to join the Russian Federation. The 57-year old approves of Moscow's attack on Ukraine and he supports Russia's military presence in Transnistria. Moldova could use this to its advantage in the energy crisis, he says. "We could make Moscow pay for having military bases here, and we could get cheaper energy and other products from Russia."

Russia has warned Moldova not to endanger its soldiers in Transnistria, or the country would risk an attack. But according to the director of Moldova's Institute of Legal, Political and Sociological research Victor Juc, the presence of Russian troops on Moldovan territory represents a danger.

"At any moment, Russia could request from the Tiraspol authorities to play a more active role in the Ukraine conflict," he told CGTN.

Despite criticism from the United Nations, Russian troops have been present in Transnistria for 30 years in what Moscow describes as a peacekeeping capacity. Since the region declared independence from Moldova in the early 1990s, no countries have recognized the self-proclaimed republic.