U.S. equipment for Moldovan army

The National Army was handed over equipment worth US$1 million at a ceremony held on the territory of a military unit in Chisinau on June 2, Info-Prim Neo reports. In the name of the Government of Moldova, Minister of Defense Vitalie Marinuta thanked the U.S. authorities for their support to modernizing the military equipment and military patrimony of the National Army. “Today’s event shows again that the U.S. is a valuable partner that contributes to the development of Moldova and the state institutions, like the National Army, by different methods,” said the minister. U.S. Ambassador to Moldova Asif Chaudhry said the U.S. considers that Moldova is an important and true friend and will continue to support it within possibilities. “Moldova committed itself to becoming a democratic country, which will contribute to the promotion of peace and security in the world. We want to be sure that Moldova is able to defend its strategic interests. We want to be sure that Moldova can deal with the security challenges of the 20th century,” said Asif Chaudhry. He also said that the equipment provided to the National Army was used by U.S. soldiers to defend democracy and freedom in different corners of the world. The equipment includes trucks, ambulances, refrigerators, pick-ups, jeeps, etc. It was transported from U.S. military bases based in Germany, Turkey, Spain, and Italy. The Moldovan-U.S. cooperation in defense is developed under a memorandum signed by the Ministry of Dense of Moldova and the U.S. Defense Department on December 4, 1995.