In Transnistria, they said that Moldova had de facto become part of NATO

Moscow, February 28 – The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the unrecognized Pridnestrov Republic of Moldova Vitaly Ignatiev said that Moldova has become a de facto part of NATO.

In an interview with SputnikLive, he said that Chisinau is completely switching to NATO standards, weapons are arriving there, Western military centers, joint missions and instructors are working there.

“The question is different: why is Moldova armed when it has a conflict with Transnistria? Here, on the contrary, it is necessary to disarm,” said Ignatiev.

Earlier, Moldovan President Maia Sandu, speaking at a conference in Munich, lamented that the ruling Labor and Solidarity party lacked the support of the population to obtain approval for the country’s accession to NATO. Sandu called on Western countries to help Moldova with weapons to enhance security. Sandu said that attempts are underway in the republic to change the constitutional system, and called on the country’s parliament to tighten security legislation.

According to the Constitution of Moldova, the republic has a neutral status, but since 1994 the country has been cooperating with NATO within the framework of the Individual Partnership Scheme. The information center of the Alliance operates in the capital of Moldova. In December 2017, a NATO liaison office was opened in Chisinau.