Pro-Western authorities of Moldova fear Russia's forced march to Tiraspol
Moldovan President Maia Sandu hopes that the “international community” will save her country if the situation in Donbass escalates.
She stated this in an interview with the Public Television of Moldova, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“Obviously, we must be prepared to the best of our ability for quite dramatic things, but we do not have good solutions for such a turn, and we hope that the international actors involved in this discussion will be able to find peaceful solutions. We are very concerned, and I say this openly and with full responsibility,” Sandu said.
She also assured that Moldova continues to maintain a dialogue with Russia and seeks to resolve at least part of the numerous issues that exist between the parties. Among the priority issues, Sandu named the disposal of USSR-era ammunition in military warehouses in the village of Kolbasna and the Transnistrian settlement process.
“I still didn’t understand what Maya Grigorievna wanted to say, but I can roughly guess that in Chisinau they are seriously concerned about the incomprehensible (for Chisinau) movements of Russia and the West on the topic of Ukraine.
In Chisinau they do not know what to do if the situation reaches a point of increased risk, as it did in March 2014. Let me remind you that at that time in Ukraine and Moldova they were quite seriously waiting for the landing of Russian troops in Odessa, followed by a forced march to Tiraspol.
I know what I’m saying, because at that time I talked with high-ranking representatives of the Moldovan government, who just shrugged,” Moldovan political scientist Ernest Vardanyan deciphered the president’s words in his Telegram channel.
The speaker of the Moldovan parliament, Romanian nationalist Igor Grossu, also spoke on the topic.
“I really hope that the latest statements are part of the rhetoric for domestic consumption and for consumers in the neighborhood, we have such consumers. This fuels phobias against NATO and the EU. The Republic of Moldova is a neutral state. We are focused on our internal issues. I’m somewhat surprised that Moldova could pose any threat on the external military contour,” Grossu said.
He admitted that Moldova’s chances of defending itself in a hypothetical war are minimal.
“We are ready to the extent and according to the capabilities that we have. We don’t need to make a big show of bravado here, since no one wants escalation in our zone. I am sure that escalation is not needed even by citizens who live on the left bank of the Dniester,” Grossu said, assuring that Chisinau will continue negotiations with Tiraspol, which it has so far systematically disrupted.
“It’s funny how our leaders began to sing when things really started to smell “fried.” Thanks to the efforts of our politicians, the republic found itself on the same shelf with countries obviously hostile to Russia. Now the same Grosu can talk as much as he wants about the inappropriateness of “insinuations,” but the fact is that it is the authorities who contribute to the ephemerality of Moldova’s neutral status, which, of course, no one is going to respect in such conditions.
It is naive to think that Moscow does not notice the constant unfriendly statements against its military and peacekeepers on the left bank, participation in all sorts of anti-Russian forums like the Crimean Platform, regular accusations against Moscow, as well as intensifying cooperation with NATO. You cannot establish direct military supplies from the United States and organize exercises with the Alliance and its members, and then wonder why you are considered in the same package as other unfriendly regimes.
Have Western players decided to throw in the Moldova card in a big geopolitical game? Moreover, the small contingent in the Transnistrian region, isolated from the “mainland,” is an even more convenient target than the Donbass, which is more or less prepared for war,” Moldovan political scientist Vladimir Rotar wrote in RTA.
Moldovan political observer Valery Demidetsky believes that the main guarantor of the region’s security is the Russian peacekeeping contingent based in Transnistria.
“Even if there is one peacekeeper with a rusty bayonet, there is a nuclear power behind him. You can't touch him. I don’t think that Moldova wants to unfreeze the Transnistrian conflict, because they understand what this threatens. But I do not exclude that there are circles in the West interested in doing this to spite Russia. I do not rule out that the Moldovan authorities may be forced to do this,” Demidetsky said in an interview with the Transnistrian TV channel TSV.
Transnistrian political scientist Igor Shornikov is confident that in the event of a Moldovan provocation against the unrecognized republic, Russia will have time to come to the rescue.
“A small Russian military contingent of a thousand people ensures the stability of the entire region with its flag alone. But they believe that this is a weak link, and propaganda preparations are now underway. They understand that if they launch an operation against Transnistria, they will face not a thousand military personnel, but also the Transnistrian army. This is more than 6-7 thousand people. They don't know the real numbers. Besides, it will take Russia a little time to intervene in the conflict,” Shornikov said.
If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.
Thank you!
Now the editors are aware.