Security costs and investments in defense should be predictable and safe each year so that purchases of military equipment and armament are made, said ex-minister of defense Eugen Sturza. According to him, the economic development of a state depends on investments in defense as none of the large companies come to invest in Moldova as long as there is no certainty about the country’s security, IPN reports.
The former minister of defense noted that the country’s economic development depends on two importance factors – independent justice and a solid defense system. The large investors want predictable conditions in justice and security, but these are now absent in Moldova.
“Large investments in the Republic of Moldova will never come for several reasons. Justice sector is one of the factors. The investor needs to know that the case will be solved in court in case of a dispute and the invested money will not be lost. Security is the second factor. The investor needs to be sure that the Russian Federation will not come tomorrow and they will not lose the investments. Respectively, the equipping of the National Army and the development of security are primarily related to security and also to economic development,” Eugen Sturza stated in the program “Reflection Points” on Vocea Basarabiei channel.
According to the ex-minister, the augmentation of the budget for defense is essential given the security crisis faced by the region. The National Security Strategy should provide for a constant increase in the Ministry of Defense’s budget.
“We launched a lot of projects. A number of projects are now financed by the European Union, the United States, but we must also contribute and ensure financing. The budget has been increased indeed, but this increase should be not for a year only. There should be a very clear strategy for augmenting the Ministry of Defense’s budget and the National Security Strategy and the National Defense Strategy should stipulate this. If there is certainty that each year the Republic of Moldova will annually allocate a particular percentage of the GDP, this will enable the state to plan the purchase of the necessary equipment as the purchase of armament or military vehicles is actually a very long process,” said Eugen Sturza.
The Ministry of Defense’s budget for 2023 is about 1.7 billion lei, up 650 million lei on last year. This is 0.5% of the Gross Domestic Product.
