Moldova: Emergency Security Council convened after Transnistrian blasts

LAST UPDATE: 13.56

Moldovan President Maia Santou has convened an emergency meeting of the National Security Council following a series of bombings in the Moscow-backed Transnistrian region, which in recent hours has created a climate conducive to the expansion of pro-Russian operations in Russia.

The meeting will take place at noon and will be followed by a press conference by the Moldovan president.

At the same time, the Transnistrian authorities have raised the alert level for a “terrorist threat” based on the series of bombings observed in the last hours in the pro-Russian enclave.

A climate of concern has prevailed since the start of the Russian attack on Ukraine in Moldova, a former Soviet republic, which it fears will be Moscow’s next target.

The concern was heightened by a series of explosions that took place yesterday and today in Transnistria, which is financially and militarily supported by Moscow.

Yesterday, an explosion took place at the headquarters of the local Ministry of Public Security of the self-proclaimed republic in the “capital” Tiraspol, while today explosions hit a radio tower destroying two antennas, in the village of Mayak, near the border with Ukraine. Shortly afterwards, the Transnistrian Security Council announced a “terrorist attack” on a military unit near Tiraspol.

The “incidents” come at a time when Moldovan authorities are fearing the opening of a side of the Russian offensive in Ukraine and while Chisinau’s relations with Moscow are strained by the takeover of the presidency by pro-European Maya Santou.

Fears were heightened last week when a Russian general said Moscow was seeking to occupy southern Ukraine, which borders Transnistria, to secure direct access to the Moscow-backed separatist enclave financially and militarily.

General Rustam Minekaev, deputy commander of the Russian Central Command, also said that Moldova’s Russian-speaking population was “a victim of oppression.” This pretext is systematically invoked by Moscow for its military interventions. He also referred to the “defense of the Russian minority” for its invasion of Ukraine.

Moldova has summoned the Russian ambassador to protest the threat, urging Moscow to “respect its territorial integrity”.

Transnistria seceded from the state of Moldova after a brief civil conflict following the break-up of the Soviet Union. The enclave, with a population of 500,000, is almost entirely dependent on Moscow, which supplies free gas and has deployed 1,500 troops there.

Moldova, a small Eastern European country with a population of 2.6 million, sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine, is already suffering the consequences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine with an influx of 400,000 refugees.

SOURCE: AMPE