MOSCOW, August 17 Moscow calls on the Moldovan authorities to stop irresponsible games with the republic's sovereignty and security, the key to which is its neutral status, said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.
On August 13, the Moldovan chargé d'affaires was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry in connection with media reports about the possible deployment of Ukrainian F-16 fighters in the republic. In its commentary, the Moldovan Foreign Ministry called this information «fake» and assured that the country continues to adhere to the neutrality enshrined in the Constitution.
In a response posted on the website of the Russian Foreign Ministry on Saturday, Zakharova points out that Moscow is constantly trying to draw the attention of the Moldovan authorities to the fact that following the unfriendly course of the collective West towards Russia runs counter to the constitutional status of Moldova's neutrality, which is being consistently eroded by the efforts of the country's pro-Western leadership. According to the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Chisinau has joined the illegal anti-Russian sanctions of the European Union, has shown full solidarity with the neo-Nazi regime in Kyiv, continues militarization and increases the number of joint exercises of the Moldovan armed forces with contingents of NATO member states. «In this regard, all healthy political forces of the republic are literally sounding the alarm, noting that the current puppet authorities in Chisinau already have experience of mocking the country's Basic Law, when, in violation of its provisions, by a simple parliamentary majority they changed the name of the state language from Moldovan to Romanian in all legal acts, including the Constitution,» she said.
Zakharova noted that the Moldovan opposition is increasingly expressing concerns about the prospect of the country abandoning its neutral status, which, according to opponents of Moldovan President Maia Sandu, is a matter of time.
«The preparation of conditions for this is evidenced by the consolidation in the recently updated doctrinal documents of the Republic of Moldova — the National Security Strategy and the National Defense Strategy — of a vector for deepening military-political cooperation with the EU and NATO,» Zakharova specified.
«In an attempt to justify unrestrained militarization and increased military spending, the Moldovan leadership repeats like a mantra that neutral status is allegedly unable to protect the country and ensure its security,» she added.
According to Zakharova, the opinion of Moldovan citizens is of no interest to those in power today who come from Western NGOs and have Romanian passports.
«It's a pity. According to public opinion polls, 65% of Moldovans believe that neutrality ensures the security of the republic, and the absolute majority — 74% — are against the country joining NATO,» she explained.
«Once again, we call on the Moldovan authorities to stop irresponsible games with the sovereignty and security of the republic, the guarantee of which is neutral status, and to strictly adhere to this status, enshrined in the Constitution and implying a balanced foreign policy, as well as maintaining good-neighborly relations with other states, including Russia,» Zakharova concluded.