The Republic of Moldova must return to the idea of financing and modernizing the National Army as it must develop its defense sector, security expert Andrei Curăraru said after pieces of a Shahed drone containing 50 kilograms of an explosive substance were found near Etulia in southern Moldova. According to the expert, ahead of the presidential election in Russia, such cases can intensify as Moscow wants to demonstrate its military force, IPN reports.
Andrei Curăraru noted that the radar that was recently acquired by the Moldovan authorities can detect drones flying over the national airspace, but cannot destroy them in a timely manner.
“The Ground Master 200 radar that was purchased can detect drones. But there must be more such radars and they should cover the entire territory of the Republic of Moldova. At the moment, what we can do is identify them and send special crews to prevent children or civilians from coming across such fragments as they don’t know how to act in such cases and can cause an unfortunate detonation. We need to get back to the idea of financing the army and modernizing it. It must be linked to the new realities. Ukraine produces 63 types of drones for different targets. It is also advisable for the Republic of Moldova to think about how to develop its defense capabilities,” Andrei Curăraru stated in the program “Nonconfidential” on Radio Chisinau station.
According to the expert, the security risks to Moldova could increase in the immediate period in connection with the presidential election in Russia and the delay in delivering to Ukraine the weapons promised by the Western partners.
“It’s clear that before the election in Russia, they will want some advances, at least symbolic. They will want an image of Russia projecting force. At the same time, we are witnessing that hunger for projectiles experienced by Ukraine due to the limitation of aid from the West, especially the U.S. Thus, the capacity to shoot down drones decreases and the Ukrainians economize on such means. We can anticipate more cases in which such remains or even intact drones will land on the territory of the Republic of Moldova,” explained Andrei Curăraru.
The Shahed drone found near Etulia, was detonated by specialists under maximum safety conditions. According to military experts, the 50 kilograms of explosive could have destroyed a house if the drone had fallen into a residential area.
