Mark, I am sorry for your desperation (I'll refrain from skepticism), but it is both misguided and misplaced. The issue is far wider than a dialog with "pro-Moldovan" interests. It is a a dialog with Russo-skeptic interests—and since Mauco has branded me a partisan, I'll identify that as my "partisanship." I do not see this as an ethnic struggle for self-determination of Ukranians and Russians from Moldovans. I see it as a naked Russian power play (and not the only such one currently) to gain economic advantage and energy advantage it can use as a lever and territorial buffer advantage against NATO expansion. Regarding the will of the people and dancing with joy in the streets, no impartial observer—and certainly no Russo-skeptic—will regard those as true expressions until such time as, minimally:
 the authorities, from the top to the bottom, are replaced with Transnistrian natives, not populated by Russian citizens including OMON thugs who transplanted to Transnistria once their attempts at thwarting true democracy in the Baltics by violent and deadly means failed, and
 Russia (and Ukranian) forces completely vacate the Transnistrian territory, that is all arms, all troops, and raze all arms depots to the ground.
When that happens, and people then dance in the streets, then I will be prepared to initiate a discussion with you about that expression being genuine.
   You keep talking about the parliament's "opposition" to Smirnov. As a Russo-skeptic, I will tell you that my interpretation is not popular representation in action, my interpretation is a bunch of initially hastily organized parties which all suddenly appeared right before some "elections" which are now engaged with the leadership—which has not changed since its inception—in a carefully orchestrated ballet intended to present a fully believable facsimile of representative government. We can seriously discuss the will of the people:
after every Russian in the PMR authorities is out (as in out, and out of the country);
after the foreign troops are all out (as in out of the country, and their arms depots demolished)and I don't mean Russian military retiring to become "citizens of the PMR," either;
after it is legal for a political party to be pro-Moldovan (that currently being treason); and
after Romanian is once again taught in its proper Latin script, not in some Cyrillic Soviet-era utter bastardization created purely to support the Stalinist fiction that Moldovans are not Romanians.
Then we can seriously discuss the validity of your interpretation. I have the patience to wait for that discussion, do you?
   If the "Russo-skeptics" disagree with anything I've represented, please feel free to correct. —