Blockade of Transnistria in Another Strategic Loss for Putin - Silicon Wafers

[TexasTowelie]

2026-01-12 | UPDATES #097 | Another Strategic Catastrophe for Putin? The Quiet Squeeze on Transnistria. A story has been ricocheting across some of the more strategic pro-Ukraine feeds and Signal chats but seems to have made barely a dent in the mainstream media coverage: Ukraine and Moldova “quietly” sealed every remaining supply route into Russian-controlled Transnistria at midnight on New Year’s Day — cutting off Moscow’s troops without firing a shot. It’s been framed as a sudden, surgical chokehold. A clean geopolitical kill. It’s bold but barely noticed.

On a strategic level, Transnistria is a problem for Moscow. A trapped garrison. A propaganda lever. A pro-Russian militia force, and Russian aligned military base right on the edge of Europe but potentially becoming part of the EU with Moldova’s accession. This surely cannot be allowed to pass. It should also be seen as a potential sabotage platform, in a year where Russian hybrid warfare operations against Europe are likely to expand dramatically.