As Russian president Vladimir Putin signed a treaty on Tuesday making Crimea part of Russia, a little-known region in neighboring Moldova has also pleaded to join the country.

Russian loyalists in the breakaway region of Trans-Dniester, which shares a border with Ukraine, asked the parliament in Russia to write new laws that would allow them to join the country.

(Read more: No one supports military response: Ukraine PM) The Trans-Dniester region split from Moldova around 1990 and made a failed attempt at independence in 2006, when it held a referendum that was unrecognized internationally. The region did not want to split from the Soviet Union at the time of its collapse and has now requested unity with Russia. Otilia Dhand, vice president at advisory and intelligence firm Teneo Intelligence said Trans-Dniester has been asking to join the Russian Federation for two decades, so now is an opportune moment to ask again.



Moldova, Eastern Europe, including breakaway region of Trans-Dniester Lonely Planet Images | Getty

Dhand said up until now the Kremlin had shown little interest in absorbing the region as it offers little strategic and economic benefits.

"There are 550,000 citizens of citizens of Trans-Dniester who mostly also claim other citizenships. There are about 150,000 of them that claim dual citizenship with Russia and many others claim Ukrainian citizenship or Romanian so it is kind of a mixed picture," Dhand told CNBC. (Read more: Soc Gen CEO: I am committed to Russia)

"Russia has roughly 1,000 soldiers based there and also some ammunition and equipment that comes with it. They are not such a substantial force as they are in Crimea and Russia does not have common borders with Trans-Dniester, so it would be difficult to service as a territory," she said. "If they were interested in tactically taking it over – it would just really be for show. Should Russia choose to take Trans-Dniester over, it would be quite intimidating for Ukraine," she added.

Speaker of the high council, Mikheil Burla sent a written address to a speaker in Russia's Duma, the lower house, asking him to consider legislation that would allow the non-recognized republic to become part of Russia, according to media reports.

The President of Moldova Nicolae Timofti has warned that any move to enable the mainly Russian speaking region to join Russia would be a "mistake". (Read more: Don't change Ukraine's borders: Swedish minister)

"This is an illegal body which has taken no decision on inclusion into Russia," Reuters cited Timofti as saying at a news conference. "If Russia makes a move to satisfy such proposals, it will be making a mistake," he said.

A Trans-Dniestrian soldier Yoray Liberman | Getty Images