Nistru veterans commemorate Tighina deaths

A group of veterans of the Nistru war today laid wreaths to the monument of Stephen the Great in Chisinau in commemoration of the comrades that were killed in one of the bloodiest acts of the war at Tighina (also known as Bender) when the separatist forces attacked Moldovan policemen, Info-Prim Neo reports. “It is one thing to follow an order and it is quite another when you are driven by love for the country. I just have to be here today together with this brave men, who defended our independence”, stated acting president Mihai Ghimpu. Asked whether June 19 would be declared as an official day, as the veterans request, Mihai Ghimpu said the authorities had already declared Memorial Day to be March 2, the day the war started in 1992. Ion Teleman, a veteran from Nisporeni, says he didn't participate in the Tighina operation, but fought at Chitchani, near Tighina: “We had to stand up to defend ourselves from the aggressor Russia, who used the 14th Army to cross the Nistru and attack Bessarabia. The Russian tanks were eventually stopped, but we fought with very little weaponry, whereas they were armed to the teeth. Finally, the war ended with a disgraceful peace treaty. Yet even after the war ended we have remained the same fighters for the re-integration with our mother land Romania and for the integration into the European Union and the NATO structures”. Presidential adviser Stefan Uritu recounted that on 19 June 1992 when the government saw that the policeman who defended the integrity of the Republic of Moldova didn't cope with the attacking forces, volunteers were called from all of the country. Many of them had the experience of Afghanistan. Uritu said that about 350 volunteers from a number of districts were delegated to participate in the commemoration event today. After the wreath-laying ceremony, president Mihai Ghimpu and the volunteers held a meeting.