The civil society organizations that focus on security and defense stand ready to take part in the working out of the National Security Strategy and other strategic documents, if the state institutions ask them to become involved. “If we aim to also be pro-active, let’s come up with initiatives, proposals and offer our support,” said Elena Mârzac, executive director of the Information and Documentation Center on NATO in Moldova. “The civil society organizations, of the security and defense sector, can fully contribute with analyses of the regional and global security environment, by identifying the risks and threats, and also with proposals for improving the national security and defense system,” stated Elena Mârzac, being quoted by IPN.
According to her, there are few civil society organizations that deal with security and defense in Moldova, compared with the European states. In an international roundtable meeting, Elena Mârzac spoke about a study of mapping of civil society organizations that focus on security and defense in Moldova. She noted that there is a platform of 15 organizations dealing with security and defense and they face such challenges as the lack of financing for covering their needs for implementing projects and lack of access to state documents on security and defense as these are classed as state secret. “The mapping was necessary given that the new political administration elected as a result of the presidential and parliamentary elections wanted to know the players with which it will cooperate on issues related to this sector,” said Elena Mârzac, noting that the Military Academy and the Agency for Military Science and Memory can become involved in the activities of this platform.
The Military Academy of the Armed Forces “Alexandru cel Bun” has traditionally taken part in the designing of strategic documents. “We now have a unit that takes part directly in such activities, after the Center for Strategic Defense and Security Studies of the Academy was transferred to the newly founded Agency for Military Science and Memory. But we proposed a new organogram to the administration of the Ministry of Defense, asking to set up a new security and defense research unit that can take part in those activities,” the Academy’s rector Anatolie Bucuci has told IPN.
For his part, Ion Coropcean, director of the Agency for Military Science and Memory that includes a unit for of strategic defense and security studies, said the national security sector is related to the level planning for which the country’s political administration, the Supreme Security Council are responsible. “We can offer support to the Ministry of Defense in the defense sector,” stated Ion Coropcean.
On October 19, the Information and Documentation Center on NATO in Moldova will hold the launch of a publication entitled “Security between Stereotypes and Realities” signed by Elena Mârzac and Natalia Albu. The online event will include discussions on the civil society’s role in security and defense.
