The Ukrainian President’s warning about the existence of Moscow’s plan to oust the government in Chisinau, which was confirmed by President Maia Sandu and after which President Klaus Iohannis assured that Romania will support the citizens of Moldova, generates the idea that the Republic of Moldova is exposed to a real danger, expert of the Institute for European Policies and Reforms (IPRE) Mihai Mogâldea stated in a program on the public TV channel Moldova 1. For their part, political commentators said the destabilization of the internal situation can be prevented by the public order institutions, but Moldova will be unable to cope with a military attack without foreign support, IPN reports.
Political commentator Nicolae Negru said the annulment by Vladimir Putin of his decree of 2012, which provided for the settlement of the Transnistrian issue by observing the sovereignty, territorial integrity and neutrality of the Republic of Moldova, does not mean that a military invasion will follow automatically.
“The annulment of the decree concerning the foreign policy of the Russian Federation is an important event, but the Republic of Moldova is mentioned there among others. This decree was annulled not in the case of the Republic of Moldova or of the Transnistrian conflict. It rather refers to the treaty on strategic arms, their limitation and reduction. This is their way of warning international public opinion about the fact that Russia has this weapon, is disposed to do new nuclear tests and will not allow NATO inspectors to come. The way in which this war started points to particular desiderata of Putin and to his obsession with the historical past,” Nicolae Negru stated in the program “Good Evening” on the public TV channel.
However, IPRE expert Mohair Mogâldea considers there are internal destabilization risks and eventual military dangers threatening Moldova’s security.
“Over the past two weeks, we have seen a series of messages that came from the country and from aboard, starting with the speech of President Zelensky, who announced the existence of Russia’s plan to destroy any democratic form in Chisinau. Later, President Maia Sandu confirmed this. President Iohannis announced that Romania is ready to support the Republic of Moldova in any context, under any scenario. All these things taken together show there is a real threat to the Republic of Moldova, which can come both from inside and from outside. The state institutions assured us that the internal situation can be kept under control, but from military viewpoint, it is clear that things stand bad and we are exposed,” stated Mihai Mogâldea.
The director of the Women’s Political Club “50/50” Ecaterina Mardarovici is skeptical about the Shor Party’s capacity to destabilize the internal situation in Moldova through antigovernment protests. She said the protests shouldn’t be banned, but the authorities should remain watchful.
“We are not Putin. We are not the Russian Federation. Some of these people probably take to the streets for 500 lei, but others protest because their situation is really bad and we must respect this right of theirs. They do not necessarily have economic demands, but it is clear that there are political demands behind these protests. I think they realized that the security bodies and the police have their eye on them and they calmed down. But this does not mean that the authorities should stop being vigilant,” noted Ecaterina Mardarovici.
On Thursday, after a meeting with President Maia Sandu at the Cotroceni Palace, the Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said the external threats to democratic order in the Republic of Moldova are especially worrisome, but assured that the Republic of Moldova is not alone in front of these challenges and benefits from Romania’s support.