Conscription campaign launched in Transnistria

The conscription into the army of young men born between 1981 and 1990 and of those who were allowed to do their military service later started in the Transnistrian region. The campaign will continue until December 31, Info-Prim Neo’s correspondent in the region informs. The Ministry of Defense and the Military Commissariat are now considering providing certain concessions, including reducing the term of the military service. A relevant legislative document has been examined by the local parliament this spring. Galina Antiufeeva, the president of the committee for legislation, said then that if the term of the military service in the Armed Forces is reduced to a year and the list of concessions is extended, there will not enough recruits. Therefore, the list of persons that benefit from concessions will be undoubtedly reviewed. “The young men that have children younger than 3 are exempted from doing their military service in Transnistria. This right in Russia is no longer granted, while the young families are paid compensations to help them maintain their children. But Transnistria cannot provide such compensations owing to the budget deficit. It is rather probable that such a concession will be kept,” Antiufeeva said. In this connection, the officials in Transnistria are commenting on the confidence building agreement signed by Moldova and Transnistria on August 8. Vladimir Atamaniuc, councilor of the Transnistrian Ministry of Defense, said that this document introduces nothing new in the relations between the police institutions. According to him, the measures stipulated in the document have been carried out earlier too. However, Vladimir Atamaniuc approved of the intention to strengthen cooperation between the Ministries of Defense of Moldova and Transnistria through documents. The death of two recruits in Transnistria this year aroused controversy. The parents of the two solders presume that their sons died as a result of physical abuse. According to the local Health Ministry, only two of ten young men in Transnistria are able-bodied for military service. As many as 700 soldiers have been drafted into the army this spring and 500 persons last autumn.