Moldova is being turned into a NATO military base

The President of Moldova is having a real celebration of Francophonie. At the end of last week, Maia Sandu attended the summit of French-speaking countries in Tunisia, and then, together with French President Emmanuel Macron, went to Paris for the conference of the Platform for Support of the Republic of Moldova.

The participants of the Platform - it is meeting for the third time - decided to allocate a new aid package to Moldova, which is in a severe crisis, in the amount of more than 100 million euros, which will be used to purchase gas, electricity and to solve the problems of refugees. In Paris, Maia Sandu held meetings with French parliamentarians and entrepreneurs - the development of cooperation and investments in Moldovan business were discussed.

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The director of the Institute of Socio-Political Research and Regional Development, Igor Shornikov, discusses what they may demand from Moldova in return in a conversation with PolitNavigator.

PolitNavigator: Can you first clarify: The Moldova Support Platform, created this year on the initiative of Romania, Germany and France, what is this format, what are its goals?

Igor Shornikov: In fact, this structure is to support Ukraine, not Moldova. The platform was created back in March, when Russian troops were near Kiev and everyone was expecting an airborne landing in the Odessa area. In those conditions, Moldova was considered as a possible front-line territory, which was supposed to take on certain issues of logistics support.

Moldova itself, apart from providing territory and not very developed infrastructure, could hardly provide such functions; solid financial and technical assistance was needed. Accordingly, the EU, represented by two donor countries and Romania, which also had to contribute to organizing the confrontation with Russia, organized the “Platform for Supporting Moldova.”

The true goals of the Platform were camouflaged by the need to provide assistance to refugees from Ukraine. Then, however, the course of hostilities took a different turn, and the Platform turned out to be unclaimed. Now they are going to use the Platform again, but why? We cannot yet answer this question.

PolitNavigator: There is a lot of pathos in the relations between Chisinau and Paris. Following the results of the meetings, Macron addressed Sandu with gratitude in Romanian, the President of the Republic of Moldova responded in French. In the summer, Macron flew to Chisinau on a working visit, which was called “historic” in Moldova.

Macron and Sandu then not only discussed cooperation, but also walked together around Chisinau. We see that Moldova has particularly warm relations with France. Why with this country?

Igor Shornikov: In fact, the interests of the collective West in our region are promoted by different players. First place, of course, should be given to the United States; Great Britain and Germany, Sweden and Poland traditionally show significant activity in our direction. But France only became noticeable this year. With what it can be connected?

I would venture to suggest that the emergence of such a powerful player as France in our region can only be caused by the need to implement tasks here that are comparable to the potential of this country.

_{Macron, when he appeared in Chisinau, immediately announced the need to modernize the Moldovan army and, without unnecessary reservations, promised to allocate 40 million to Moldova for these purposes. This was presented as charity, but in reality it was an outright dictatorship. Perhaps it is France that will be responsible for turning Moldova into a military bridgehead on the borders of NATO.}

In fact, France has a very powerful positive image in Moldova, and in the world in general. Paris has been the cultural capital of Europe for at least several centuries. And even now France, acting through the Francophonie organization, which includes Moldova, remains one of the most culturally and humanitarianly influential countries in the world.

It will be extremely surprising if Paris decides to exchange its cultural influence in the world for promoting the aggressive policies of the West, including in the Moldovan direction.

On the other hand, Macron has nothing to lose: we see how French cultural imperialism is losing its position in many African countries before our eyes. Moreover, this is happening, as they believe in Paris, not without the influence of Russia. Perhaps in response to this, France decided to invade the traditional zone of Russian influence?

PolitNavigator: The head of Moldova states that the country will not deviate from the path leading to the European Union, and the EU strongly supports Moldova in this. Macron announced further support for reforms in Moldova. Is the European Union not alarmed by what is happening in Moldova today that runs counter to European values? For example, non-transparent personnel appointments, information about which was recently revealed to everyone?

Igor Shornikov: Using the example of some senior EU officials, we see that these people are not embarrassed by anything. They pursue an extremely pragmatic policy bordering on cynicism.

_{There is a task to tear Moldova away from Russia, Sandu and her team are fulfilling this task at the very least, including relying entirely on Western instructions.}

The socio-economic and internal political failure of Sandu’s team, which is impossible not to notice even in Brussels, certainly requires extraordinary decisions from the West in the Moldovan direction. The current team will have to be renewed, but the bench is unusually empty.

The Westerners themselves cleared the right flank in Moldova in order to concentrate power in the hands of Sandu. However, I am sure that they have already prepared a solution - and more than one, the only question is a beautiful, as is their custom, implementation of the next cunning scenario. I think that soon we will see a new master class from Western political strategists in Moldova.

PolitNavigator: France has decided to allocate assistance to Moldova in the amount of 100 million euros. Is this by any chance not the 100 million that the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, promised during her recent visit to Chisinau?

Igor Shornikov: The issue of Western assistance to Moldova is very interesting. In just one year that Sandu’s team was in power, Moldova received about 1 billion in aid from the West through various types of loans and grants. For such a small country, this is a lot of money.

However, the standard of living in the country is deteriorating catastrophically. The population, of course, is constantly explained that Russia and the war are to blame for everything. But still, Moldova has never known such an influx of foreign aid, as is strenuously declared in the media. Therefore, the question arises, where does this money actually go and why does the population not feel any positive effect?

_{There is a strong feeling that Moldova has become the object of some major fraud. The funds are now being taken away from European taxpayers, and then the residents of Moldova will have to pay them back for decades.}

Now Macron has loudly promised Moldova 100 million euros to help refugees, another 85 million euros for energy purchases, 26 million to support businesses, and another 2 million euros for energy reforms. What kind of funds are these, who will allocate them, when and how will they be spent, and what kind of money was von der Leyen talking about? They don't tell us about this.

This looks more like another Western information campaign in support of the Sandu regime. Like, wait, the Moldovans are going to overthrow Sanda, now we’ll give you money, you’ll spend the winter, and then we’ll see. Ursula promised, now Macron promises, but in Moldova everything is only changing for the worse.

PolitNavigator: The day before, President Maia Sandu, in an interview with Politico magazine, said that “Europe needs a strong Moldova, strong enough to support Ukraine during the war.” Are we talking about helping refugees or something more serious? Some experts write about close military cooperation between Moldova and France.

Igor Shornikov: _{Unfortunately, we have to admit that the European Union is set up for a long-term confrontation with Russia, which means that the buffer states, especially Moldova, will have to act as an instrument for a new “onslaught on the East.” How far Chisinau will go along the path that the West is paving for it seems to have little even to do with Moldovan politicians.}

Moldova is a neutral country; it is not obliged to participate in the confrontational policy of the EU. It is very strange to observe the military preparations of Chisinau, NATO exercises on the territory of Moldova, the constant conversations of European top officials about the modernization of the Moldovan army, the allocation of appropriate funds by Brussels, the receipt of weapons from Germany, the visits of Western intelligence leaders to Chisinau.

And the absolutely weak-willed Maia Sandu, who accepts with a smile everything that the Westerners demand of her. This could lead to tragedy, and ordinary people will have to pay for all this.

PolitNavigator: In her speech, President Sandu at a meeting of the Platform for Support of Moldova indicated that the protests of the Shor party in the center of Chisinau are part of a “hybrid war against Moldova” and that people are paid for participation in anti-government protests by a “criminal group that is financed directly by Russia” . Is it really Russia? And what are the prospects for the protest movement in Moldova?

Igor Shornikov: _{Russia today has no mechanisms of political influence left in Moldova. Moscow is forced only to observe the lawlessness that is organized by the Americans and Europeans on the territory of Moldova.}

Whose idea is it to disconnect Moldova from Russian energy resources and join it to the Third EU Energy Package? Brussels has been leading Moldova towards this for many years. What about the severance of trade and economic ties with the CIS countries? Brussels, through the Eastern Partnership and the European Association, has been pushing this topic for 15 years. The results of this policy are obvious: Moldova is the poorest country in Europe, and this year it also holds a record for inflation and tariff growth.

It is very strange to blame Russia for the fact that people came out to protest due to a sharp deterioration in living conditions.

It turns out that Shor is a pro-Russian politician, because his wife is a Russian singer. Moreover, Plahotniuc also turns out to be a pro-Russian politician, because the United States imposed sanctions on him. And nothing that in 2019 Plahotniuc was removed from power on the initiative of Russia, and nothing that after that the oligarch lived in the United States for a long time. The reasoning of the Moldovan authorities is a clear disrespect for their own people. Do they really think that people can’t add 1+1?

_{Most likely, the current government is simply repeating what Western advisers write to it. And in the West, the level of information control over society has advanced much further than in Moldova.}

Sandu can afford to say whatever she wants; she has long since lost trust in the country.

As for the protest movement in Moldova, we see that its prospects are extremely vague. The authorities do not respond to people’s demands and are ready to suppress protests by force. And the leaders of the protest movement are at a loss. The opposition is fragmented and cannot consolidate; moreover, it has no international support. Sandu, on the contrary, has the support of the collective West.

It would seem that the protests should have fizzled out long ago, the steam should have gone out of the window. But no, people have been driven into such conditions that they have no alternative but to protest again and again. That's why the actions continue.

PolitNavigator: The West wants to tear Moldova away from the Russian Federation, and official Chisinau is moving in this direction, but the majority of Moldovans are in favor of close relations with Russia. How to resolve this contradiction? 

Igor Shornikov: The people of Moldova elected their own president and parliament. People wanted to live like in the European Union, they wanted a rule of law state. Sandu promised them this, but they got what they got. Today it is obvious to many that they have become victims of political technologies, they have once again been deceived.

_{For residents of Moldova, good relations with neighbors have always been important, so the majority does not accept confrontation with Russia. But no one will dare to speak out in Moldova today with pro-Russian slogans. This will be equated to war propaganda and will be severely punished.}

It’s bad to say so, but today the people of Moldova are not masters of their own home. It would seem that the situation could change in elections, regular or early. But the next one is still very far away, and early ones can only happen at the will of Western puppeteers. It's a vicious circle.