The UN appreciates the involvement of the Republic of Moldova in helping refugees from neighbouring Ukraine.
The Republic of Moldova is Ukraine’s most vulnerable neighbour, the Romanian foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu stated after that country’s border had been crossed by hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian nationals fleeing their country invaded by Russian troops.
Created on some of the eastern Romanian territories annexed by the Soviet Union in 1940, following an ultimatum, and independent from Moscow since 1991, the Republic of Moldova shared the same disastrous fate with Ukraine and Russia, behind the Iron Curtain, for over half a century. According to the latest census, dating back to 2014, apart from ethnic Romanians (some of them self-identified as Moldovans), who account for roughly 80% of the population, Moldova is also home to some 180,000 Ukrainians (6.5% of the population) and 110,000 ethnic Russians (4%).
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, strange blasts and grenade attacks have fuelled fears that the conflict might spill over into the east of Moldova, where the pro-Russian breakaway region of Transnistria has been out of Chişinău’s control for 3 decades, following an intervention of the Russian Army on the side of the rebels.
All these have further deepened the tensions in a Moldovan society already divided between pro-Europeans and pro-Russians. The authorities banned the display of Russian militarist symbols, such as the ribbon of St. George and the letters „Z” and „V”. The pro-Russian, communist and socialist opposition however disregarded the regulation and on Monday they celebrated the 9 May 1945 victory of the Soviet Union against Nazi Germany.
Amid all this, the less than 3-million strong Republic of Moldova, confirmed in relevant surveys as the poorest European country, is grappling with a constant inflow of Ukrainian refugees, at the largest rate per capita in Europe. The United Nations commended Moldova on its efforts, and secretary general Antonio Guterres voiced the organisation’s support for the authorities during a visit to Chişinău. He thanked the hosts for their generosity and solidarity, and described Moldova’s actions as a model of compassion. Guterres emphasised that any violation of Moldova’s territorial integrity is also a violation of international law, condemned by the UN.
PM Natalia Gavriliţă said in turn that her government was waiting for the funding offered by the UN to support the refugees to reach Chişinău as soon as possible. The Moldovan government chief also said that, in the context of the war in Ukraine, Moldova’s defence system is on alert, to prevent the situation in the country from destabilising.
(Bogdan Matei, Radio Romania International)
