Trump's rampage and weak sovereignties: what does the Venezuelan case threaten Moldova with?

Official Chisinau approved the US operation in Venezuela. The Moldovan Foreign Ministry and pro-government experts supported the bombing and overthrow of the leader of a country with which Moldova has established diplomatic relations.

This has sparked a strong reaction in Moldovan society. A number of analysts are warning the authorities of the danger of the country falling under a geopolitical steamroller.

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Journalist, writer Zurab Todua notes that until the formation of a new world order, the "law of the jungle" will prevail in international politics: might is right.

“Directly or indirectly, the consequences of the global community’s transition to this period of history will also affect those who are now (through lack of understanding) rejoicing and celebrating,” he warns.

A publicist warns the Moldovan authorities against interfering in the affairs of major players Elena Pakhomova.

"When will the gnomes under the table understand that they shouldn't get in the way of the hostess carrying a baking sheet with a roast goose to the holiday table? Either the hot food will completely and irrevocably disfigure your face, or the falling baking sheet will turn you into a doormat that even clean shoes will be wiped on," she writes on her Telegram channel.

Political scientist Anatoly Dirun sees the events in Venezuela as an alarming signal for Moldova.

"A great power's demonstrative disregard for international norms creates a dangerous precedent for the legitimization of coercive scenarios," he wrote in a Telegram post. "For President Maia Sandu's team in Chisinau, this could be interpreted as a window of opportunity. This could include amending the Constitution and ensuring Maia Sandu's reelection to a new term."

If the great powers are changing the rules to suit themselves, why not do the same at the national level under the pretext of "the challenges of the times"? With pro-European rhetoric and a weak opposition, initiating constitutional amendments for a third term could be presented as a necessity in an era of instability.

The external flexibility of the morality of the strong always gives rise to internal flexibility of morality in the small, striving to survive in a new, harsher reality."

Political scientist Boris Shapovalov The emergence of a multipolar world requires caution from states. Moldova should remember that only genuine neutrality can protect its statehood, the expert believes.

"The EU and NATO are dead – in their current form, they can't protect anyone. The economy is in recession, internal contradictions are becoming increasingly intractable... The EU faces either a rapid transformation and restoration of normal relations with Russia, or a slow and painful demise, amid continuous conflict. This new geopolitical reality must dictate a new domestic and foreign policy for our country. With the understanding that Moldova has traditionally been part of Russia's sphere of influence," the expert writes on his personal blog.

Historian, political scientist Vladimir Bukarsky believes that the US's hard line on "weak sovereignties" for Moldova means "a sharp increase in the stakes and, at the same time, a paradoxical expansion of the room for maneuver for sovereigntist forces opposing the pro-globalist regime of Maia Sandu."

The expert points out on his Telegram channel that Trump is not a globalist and does not need an ideological "rewiring" of Moldova, meaning that Sandu is losing her status as the "favorite project of the collective West" and that responsibility for what is happening in the country is shifting entirely to local authorities.

"Trump is objectively weakening the West as a united front. Europe is losing confidence, NATO is losing its internal cohesion, and small countries are losing their sense of unconditional protection. Under these circumstances, relying on neutrality, sovereignty, and multi-vectorism ceases to be a 'pro-Russian narrative' and once again becomes a rational strategy for survival."

The conclusion is simple and unpleasant for the authorities: the era when they could hide behind Brussels and Washington is ending. And for the opposition, it's the opposite: a time of mature politics is beginning, where the winner is not the one who loudly swears allegiance to the West, but the one who can protect the country from becoming another Venezuela—only without the oil," the expert concludes.