The new Ambassador of Ukraine to the Republic of Moldova Oleksiy Danilov, former head of Ukraine’s Security and Defense Council, has sufficient experience to prove that he can contribute to the Transnistrian file and, in general, to supporting the European integration project of the Republic of Moldova and also the projects to strengthen Moldova’s military capabilities, said security expert of Watchdog Association Andrei Curăraru.
Contacted by IPN for a comment, the expert stated that the new ambassador was appointed following more significant cadre changes related to Ukraine’s defense construct. “We know that Mister Danilov continues to have direct connections and can present additional interest in the case of the Republic of Moldova for the Government and the Presidential Administration of Ukraine. The new ambassador’s background is related to security. We can anticipate the signing of an agreement similar to the one signed with France, but this can take some time because such a document needs to be negotiated. So, an agreement on military support and military capability development can follow,” said the expert.
Also, in his opinion, several projects related to energy interconnection and other projects that are now somehow on hold can be reactivated. But it will matter what Ukraine does to ensure its own energy security. “Ukraine’s position on the Transnistrian file will also be strengthened. Coming from a field where upper-level decisions were made, he will be able to more firmly support Chisinau’s movement towards reintegration,” noted Andrei Curăraru.
As for Russia’s possible reaction to this appointment, the expert said that the latest fake report in the Russian press about Oleksiy Danilov was that he allegedly welcomed the terrorist attack on Crocus, near Moscow. “So, his image in the Russian environment is a bad one, but this is a fake image. Particularly in the diplomatic field, the pragmatic approach is more important than the symbolic one, based on values. That’s why I don’t think there will be a significant impact, but the change of positions will make the Russian Federation to also raise the Moldovan file to an upper level, which is to pay more attention to what is happening in the Republic of Moldova and to the processes they are already trying to influence,” said the Watchdog expert.
According to him, the appointment of the new ambassador can step up the efforts manifested through hybrid warfare, by influencing elections, by what is strengthened around Gagauzia’s Bashkan – a kind of coalition of pro-Russian forces – to be intensified. “Maybe additional funding from the Kremlin, illegal in fact, but we will see in time. At this moment, we haven’t seen any reaction from Missis Zakharova (ed. note: spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry) who somehow preferentially comments on such changes in the Republic of Moldova,” stated Andrei Curăraru.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday appointed Oleksiy Danilov, former head of Ukraine’s Security and Defense Council, as ambassador to Moldova. In his speech on the evening of March 29, Zelensky reiterated that Oleksiy Danilov will continue his work in the diplomatic direction. “Specifically, I have approved his candidacy as our state’s new ambassador to the Republic of Moldova. He expressed to me that this is how he envisions his future work for Ukraine,” said Zelensky. The President described Moldova as “an extremely important state – both from the point of view of security challenges in the region, and from the point of view of bilateral cooperation”.
