Itar-Tass
May 6, 2014
NATO deputy secretary general to have talks with Moldovan leaders
CHISINAU: NATO Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow will arrive on a two-day visit to Moldova, the press service of the Moldovan foreign ministry said on Tuesday.
Vershbow’s programme includes talks with the Moldovan leaders and a meeting with students.
Under the constitution, Moldova is a neutral, off-bloc state but this constitutional provision is no obstacle to develop cooperation with the North Atlantic Alliance on the basis of an individual partnership plan, which provides for participation of Moldovan servicemen in NATO peacekeeping operations.
In one of his interviews last week, Moldovan President Nicolae Timofti expressed concern over the developments in Ukraine and said that membership in NATO “would help Moldova ensure better security.”
The Moldovan opposition voiced criticism at this idea. Moreover, it enjoys no support from the majority of Moldova’s residents.
According to a public opinion poll published by the Public Opinion Barometer polling organization in April, only 14% of Moldovans thought that NATO membership would be the best solution to ensure the country’s security, while 52% spoke in favour of neutrality and 12% thought it would be better to join the Collective Security Treaty Organizations (CSTO).
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Press TV
May 6, 2014
Moldova puts borders on alert over Ukraine crisis
Moldova has ordered the country’s borders to go on a state of alert due to worsening security and escalating violence in neighboring Ukraine.
Moldova’s President Nicolae Timofti, Prime Minister Iurie Leanca and Parliament speaker Igor Coreman have announced in a joint statement that security forces had been ordered “to take all necessary actions to ensure public order inside the country.”
The top leaders failed to identify a specific threat, but “expressed their concern about the deterioration of the security climate in the region following the escalation of violence in Ukraine.”
The statement comes after Ukrainian forces deployed an elite national guard unit to the volatile port city of Odessa on Monday.
Earlier in the day, pro-Russian activists and Ukrainian troops clashed on the outskirts of the country’s eastern city of Slavyansk.
Pro-Moscow protesters in Ukraine continue to occupy a number of government, police and other administrative buildings in many cities and towns in the region.
Moldova’s breakaway Trans-Dniester region submitted a plea in March to the Russian parliament to draft a law that would incorporate the territory into Russia.
This is while, pro-Western Moldovan President Nicolae Timofti cautioned Moscow against trying to “annex” Trans-Dniester.
Moscow argues that Pridnestrovie – which is better known under names such as Transdniestria or Trans-Dniester – meets the requirements for statehood under international law.
Moldova shares a 1,220 kilometer border with Ukraine, which is mostly controlled by pro-Russian separatists.
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