In the capital of Transnistria, a Kremlin-backed microstate sandwiched between Moldova and Ukraine, the festive New Year’s lights have gone dark ahead of schedule. This separatist sliver of Moldova will run out of energy in three weeks,

Every time planned electrical outages are imposed on his village in southern Moldova, 73-year-old retiree Vasili Donici passes the time by solving crosswords and puzzles in a room he illuminates using a small gas lamp.

Residents of Transnistria face severe energy shortages after Russia halted gas supplies, leading to factory closures and blackouts.

"Russian propaganda tries to create a story in which Moldova becomes a ‘problematic actor,’ although the government has proposed clear solutions to avoid the crisis," Moldovan government spokesperson Daniel Voda said on Jan.

The Moldovan government has stated that the energy crisis in the unrecognised republic of Transnistria, caused by the halt in Russian gas supplies, is part of a broader Russian plan of manipulation and propaganda.