When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Moldova became an independent state; however, the region of Transdniestria, on the east bank of the Dniester River and thus separated from the rest of Moldova with a population composed of ethnic Russians, Ukrainians, and Moldovans, sought to separate. The situation was aggravated by the presence of the former Soviet 14th Army based in Transdniestria, which mostly remained loyal to Moscow. The OSCE Mission in Moldova was created in 1993 to mediate the conflict and also to manage a potential conflict between the Gagauz population, an ethnic minority within Moldova, and the central government. The OSCE Mission was led by a US diplomat, although the Russian Foreign Ministry, especially Foreign Minister Kozyrev, also played an active third-party role. In 2005, the mediation effort was taken up by the “5 + 2” process, with Moldova, Transdniestria, the OSCE Mission, Russia and Ukraine composing the “5”, and the United States and the European Union serving as observers (“ + 2”). After the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, both Moldova and Ukraine refused to meet with the Russians, so the process became a “1 + 1” direct negotiation between Moldova and Transdniestria, which achieved some small successes in improved relations but failed to resolve the fundamental issue of the status of Transdniestria as of 2025.