Residents of Gagauzia in Moldova will be fined for wearing the St. George ribbon

Victory volunteer handing out St. George ribbons to passers-by. Archive photoCHISINAU, May 3Residents of the Gagauz autonomy of Moldova will be fined for using the St. George ribbon, although local authorities have allowed the use of this symbol, said the head of the General Inspectorate of Police, Viorel Cernauteanu. on Tuesday approved this initiative. At the same time, the Minister of Justice of Moldova, Sergei Litvinenko, said that this decision should undergo an assessment of legality and could be challenged in court.Primakov urged Russians abroad not to be afraid to wear the St. George ribbon «The police are guided by the law approved by the parliament, this is the foundation for the use of legislative norms, I do not assess the laws of Gagauzia. As long as the code of offenses is violated, all citizens will be held accountable before the law,» Cernauteanu said at the briefing. He noted that all residents of the country must respect the laws of Moldova, before doing something they must make sure that their actions do not contradict the norms of the criminal or administrative code on offenses. In Moldova, on April 20, the ban on the St. symbols V and Z. The St. George ribbon consists of three black and two orange stripes; it is an integral part of many military awards of the Russian Empire, the USSR and the Russian Federation. At the beginning of the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine in 2014, this symbol was used by militia fighters and volunteers who fought on the side of the DPR and LPR against the Ukrainian security forces. The Latin letters Z and V are painted on the sides of Russian military equipment participating in the military operation in Ukraine since February 24, 2022. In Russia, the letter Z has already become an unofficial symbol of support for the operation.