As the war in neighboring Ukraine moves closer to its border, the former Soviet republic of Moldova, which just marked 35 years of independence, faces growing pressure from Russia.
In exclusive comments to Fox News Digital, national security advisor to Moldova’s President Maia Sandu, Stanislav Secrieru, said Russia’s recent strikes against Ukrainian-Moldovan border infrastructure pose a major threat to Ukraine’s economy and access to European markets.
Secrieru told Fox News Digital that, "In August, Russia began striking Ukraine’s border infrastructure along the Moldovan frontier. With Ukrainian grain exports through the Black Sea ports under sustained attack, Moldova has become a transit route for that grain towards Romania’s ports — and the Moldovan government cut rail transit tariffs by half to keep it moving."
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These routes, Secrieru said, are a lifeline for Ukraine’s exports and for its economy. "Russia’s strikes are meant to sever them. Russia has also stepped-up violations of Moldova’s airspace in August, to intimidate us into withdrawing our support. Moldova stays the course. We will continue to provide civilian support to Ukraine and to keep the corridors that sustain its economy open," Secrieru told Fox News Digital.
President Maia Sandu reported five Russian drones violated its airspace just hours before the country celebrated its independence, in what the president called an attempt at "intimidation."
"We have repeatedly warned about the unacceptable risks posed by Russia’s war against Ukraine. Yet another Russian attack on Ukraine has once again resulted in violations of Moldova’s airspace," the foreign ministry posted on X.
Secrieru told Fox News Digital that Russia violated Moldovan airspace on 17 occasions in August, the highest number of violations in a month since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy recently visited his Moldovan counterpart in Chișinău, taking part in Independence Day celebrations and emphasizing the shared struggle of Ukrainians and Moldovans in the face of the threat posed by neighboring Russia.
"Russia is doing a lot to ruin our lives in Ukraine, to ruin your lives in Moldova, and to make it as difficult as possible for Romania. This is the ‘Russian world.’ It spoils. It destroys. But we will win. I am sure," Zelenskyy told a large Independence Day gathering.
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Both Moldova and Ukraine applied for EU membership on the same day, shortly after Russia’s invasion in 2022. Russia’s invasion and its destabilization efforts in Moldova complicate both countries' path forward to EU membership, a central goal of Putin’s Russia as Moscow has tried to stymie the countries of the former Soviet republic from moving closer to the West and EU institutions.
Russia’s new threats against its neighbors come on the heels of CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s surprise visit to Moscow, fueling speculation Russia intends to escalate conflict with NATO members, particularly the Baltic nations of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Along with its kinetic actions in Ukraine and incursions into Moldova’s airspace, Moscow uses influence operations in the former Soviet space to aid pro-Russian actors and push pro-Russian points of view.
"Russia has been interfering in Moldova for years, and these latest reports fit the broader pattern of Moscow using hybrid warfare to test how far it can push Europe without triggering a serious response," Ivana Stradner, research fellow with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital.
Moldova remains a prime target for Russian influence operations over 30 years after declaring independence from the Soviet Union. Russia maintains around 1,500 troops in the breakaway territory of Transnistria, which split away from Moldova after the declaration of independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Stradner, who focuses on Russian disinformation campaigns, said Putin is counting on Western risk aversion and betting that if a country isn’t under the NATO umbrella, the West will decide it’s safer to look away.
"That’s exactly why Moldova matters. This could be a rehearsal for how Moscow tests the Baltics," Stradner warned.
The Baltic countries are taking notice of what’s happening in Moldova and there are growing fears that Russia may escalate the conflict beyond Ukraine.
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna stated on X that while Estonia’s threat assessment has not changed, "Russia’s threat and possible provocations against NATO must be taken seriously." Other Baltic leaders including Latvia’s Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs reiterated that the threat of a Russian invasion remains low but warned of an increased risk of Russian actions.
Since independence, Moldova has set its sights on moving closer to the West, with recent elections and a referendum on becoming a member of the European Union gaining significant support.
