A fresh Russian offensive against the country’s east is quite likely, the head of the Moldovan intelligence said earlier this week, adding that Moscow is still working to establish a land route via Ukraine to the separatist enclave of Transnistria, Euraktiv reported.
The remarks made by Alexandru Musteaţă, the Information and Security Service chief, reaffirm previous messages from Ukraine, where senior military officers have recently issued warnings about the possibility of a significant new Russian onslaught early in the next year.
“The question is not whether the Russian Federation will launch a new offensive in the direction of Moldovan territory, but when it will happen: either at the beginning of the year, in January, February, or later, in March, [or] April,” Musteata told TVR Moldova, as quoted by The Times of Israel.
He asserted that according to his agency, Russia was considering a number of options to invade Moldova and that an operation might start in January, February, or even later, in March or April.
The Information and Security Service issues a statement saying that it anticipated the Russian punitive stance would depend on the outcome of its attack on Ukraine on February 24.
The Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine has encountered a number of setbacks, most notably in the south when Russian forces were compelled to flee from the western side of the Dnipro River in a significant victory for Kyiv last month.
West of Ukraine, in the breakaway state of Transnistria, which has been supported by Moscow for three decades, Russian troops and peacekeepers are stationed there. Transnistria is a small ex-Soviet republic with a modest defense budget.
According to Musteaţă, Russia wants its soldiers to cooperate with those in Transnistria, Euractiv reported.
A big onslaught that may come from the east, south, or even from Belarus to the north as early as January is being prepared by Russia, according to Ukrainian General Valery Zaluzhniy, who spoke with The Economist last week. However, the spring operation is more plausible.
Moldova has denounced the Russian offensive on its bigger neighbor and is now pursuing deeper relations with the West similar to Ukraine.
