“The intensification of military and technical cooperation between Moldova and NATO compromises the security of this country.” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin told the Kremlin-affiliated news agency, Ria Novosti. The Russian politician felt that receiving Western weapons or even deploying troops from the Atlantic alliance will not militarily protect Chisinau, capital of Moldova. On the contrary, Mikhaïl Galouzine affirmed that this State situated between Romania and Ukraine is getting closer and closer to a catastrophe and urged Moldova “not to repeat the sad experience of kyiv”. An equivocal reference to the war in Ukraine which began on February 24, 2022.
According to the weekly Ziarul of Garda, Moldovan Foreign Minister Nicu Popescu said earlier that Chisinau is in a very difficult security situation and needs to strengthen its defense potential. Moldova intends to strengthen its military cooperation with Germany, Romania and France. For his part, NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana said that in addition to supporting Ukraine in the face of the Russian offensive, the alliance must “support its partners under pressure from Russia, especially Moldova”.
Vladimir Putin wants to increase the size of the Russian army by 30%
Moreover, the head of Moldovan intelligence, Alexandru Musteata, estimated that Moscow could potentially invade Moldova in 2023. The spy said that Russia still aimed to secure a land corridor through southern and eastern Ukraine to reach the breakaway Moldovan region of Transnistria. This de facto independent territory already has thousands of Russian soldiers on board and exists autonomously from the rest of Moldova. “The question is not whether the Russian Federation will undertake a new advance towards Moldovan territory, but when it will do so,” Alexandru Musteata told the TVR-Moldova television channel.
Faced with these security risks, Moldova was granted EU candidate status in June 2022 and is actively seeking military support from European countries and the United States. “We are constitutionally neutral, but neutrality does not mean demilitarization, we need military means and all other means to defend our country, to defend our peace, to defend our people against aggression,” concluded the Moldovan minister. Foreign Affairs to explain Chisinau’s new alignment towards NATO.
Russia claims to have intercepted US-made missiles over its territory
Receive our latest news
Every day, the selection of main info of the day.