During these two years of war, Ukraine offered to Moldova, but also to the Baltic States, Poland, Romania and all NATO countries, including the U.S., the opportunity to better prepare for a possible war. “Our combatants and peaceful civilians pay with blood for it,” Ihor Romanenko, former deputy chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff, Lieutenant General, said in an interview in Kiev.
He believes that when the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, NATO countries had less potential for conventional (regular) weapons than the Russian military, but during two years they have increased their capabilities. To some extent, this was also due to the scarecrows launched by former U.S President and current. presidential candidate Donald Trump, who urged the Europeans to raise defense spending to 4% of the GDP. “Some started to do it, but they all have to do it. By the way, Trump was the first who gave Ukraine Javelins. Yes, he is a showman. Unfortunately, a Macron, who expressed his readiness to send troops to Ukraine, hasn’t yet appeared in the United States,” noted the general observed.
“NATO is increasing its capabilities and Putin already understands that he cannot stand up to everyone. That’s why he needs a break in Ukraine. He put his industry on a war footing and begins new productions. They will set up some more Crocuses and unite the Russians further. Even more ‘hunters’ will be there to fight against with Europe. That being the case, they will find fault with the U.S. as well. If the Americans maintain the current behavior, they can witness a new Pearl Harbor” (destruction of the naval base by the Japanese due to the entry of the U.S. into World War II, e.n.).
As for Russian missiles that fell on Polish territory, killing people, Ihor Romanenko said that Putin will prove to Poland and other countries in the alliance that only power matters. “Do you remember the case of the Russian plane that was shot down near the Turkish-Syrian border (November 24, 2015). Yes, Erdogan apologized, the Turkish aviators were imprisoned, and Turkey returned to trade with Russia. Instead, the Russians stopped provoking the Turks. And the Poles, with all NATO countries, will have their minds cleared, but it takes time.”
Regarding the recent intervention of Putin’s ally Alexander Lukashenko, who took an interest in the “Suwalki corridor”, an area alongside the Polish-Lithuanian border, between the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad and Belarus, making the Europeans suspect that an attack could occur there, the expert considers that the maneuver is part of hybrid warfare.
“The information component is part of this war, it is important and necessary. Aware of this, Putin is investing billions of dollars to fuel his actions. Even if he is disregarded, he continues to stand his ground, involving the leaders of other countries. In this case, his satellite Lukashenko,” the general noted. “It’s nothing but a propaganda game, a forcing of situation. We will not allow to be deceived. We’ve seen games like this before. In the early days of the war, we kept wondering when the Belarusians would set off side by side with the Russians from the north. Eventually, we realized that in order to become involved in such an adventure, one needs proper troops.”
As far as Moldova is concerned, high-performance radars were purchased, but insufficient to cope with complex tasks. A number of armored vehicles were donated to the National Army. IPN reported that in 2023, the budget of the Ministry of Defense was increased by 649.9 million lei to 1.697 billion lei, which represents 0.55% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Local media published data that for 2024 the government allocated 1.96 billion lei for the defense sector. The amount is, however, by 3 billion lei lower than the annual needs of the Republic of Moldova, which would enable it to get rid of Soviet weapons and develop the National Army according to international standards. According to the “Army-2030” project adopted in 2020, Moldova could have such an army in 10 years, provided that 5 billion lei is allocated annually.
