Moldova’s relationship with NATO and the society’s perception of this subject should be reviewed, political commentator Ion Tăbârță stated in a public debate hosted by IPN. According to him, the strengthening of the National Army’s capacities does not run counter to the status of neutrality defined in the Constitution, while the strengthening of the relations with NATO will contribute to strengthening Moldova’s security.
The expert noted that Moldova’s relationship with NATO has been long ignored, with the status of neutrality that runs counter to affiliation to a military bloc being invoked. The NATO subject should be intensely discussed so as to familiarize society with the security advantages offered by the North Atlantic Alliance.
“The NATO subject remains at academic level, at the level of students, experts and didn’t enter the masses. The parties of the left every time speak about NATO in negative terms, while the parties of the right, with small exceptions, didn’t raise this issue. In the context of the regional events, the subject of the North Atlantic Alliance should be popularized. Its role in ensuring security should be explained. The ordinary citizens can inform themselves, but the easy access to pro-NATO information allows also easy access to anti-NATO information. The involvement of the state and the political players is very important for changing the perception of NATO in the Republic of Moldova,” stated Ion Tăbârță.
The expert noted authorities’ initiatives to modernize the National Army and to strengthen Moldova’s defense capabilities are welcome and necessary in the context of the security crisis in the region. Neutrality does not protect Moldova from eventual military attacks.
“NATO does not become involved with its troops in Ukraine and will not become involved in case of military aggression against other non-NATO allies. But NATO identifies a series of instruments by which it discourages the Russian Federation’s aggressive actions. The fact that states that are not members of NATO were invited to this NATO meeting in Bucharest transmits to the Russian Federation a clear signal that the North Atlantic Alliance will help these states to increase security. Currently, the pressure on the Republic of Moldova coming from the Russian Federation is not military in character. The Republic of Moldova experiences a series of other problems and they were enumerated by the Moldova minister of foreign affairs at the meeting in Bucharest. Among these are energy resilience, socioeconomic problems and cybersecurity aspects. These are for now the major challenges to our security,” explained the political commentator.
Ion Tăbârță said Deputy Prime Minister Nicu Popescu’s participation in the NATO ministerial meeting in Bucharest is a clear signal that Moldova is important in the regional security landscape.
“NATO is now the umbrella that ensures solid security at international level in case of an aggression. Ukraine remained independent owning to the sacrifice and wish to remain a free state and not to be controlled by the Moscow dictatorial political regime. Regrettably, the post-Soviet societies are yet guided by Soviet clichés fueled by Russian propaganda. Neutrality in terms of security leads us to a wrong path. Without strengthening the National Army’s capacity, neutrality is a wrong way and we deceive ourselves. We need to review our relationship with NATO and the attitude towards NATO existing in society,” stated Ion Tăbârță.
The public debate entitled “Moldova for the first time at NATO Summit: motives and effects” was the 269th installment of IPN’s project “Developing Political Culture through Public Debates” that is supported by the Hanns Seidel Foundation.
