MOLDOVA. Transdniester. 2004. A typical Soviet mural stands outside the barracks of the remains of the 14th Soviet army, which was commanded by the famous General Lebed. Although the USSR has gone, the now-Russian army remains. This Russian military presence is one of the sticking points in the international negotiations regarding Transdniester. In many ways, Russia was the midwife in the birth of Trandniestrian statehood.