---
title: "Maia Sandu, interview for Politico: \"There is a serious discussion about our ability to defend ourselves or whether we should be part of a larger alliance\""
url: https://radiomoldova.md/p/4145/maia-sandu-interview-for-politico--there-is-a-serious-discussion-about-our-ability-to-defend-ourselves-or-whether-we-should-be-part-of-a-larger-alli
published: 2023-01-21T10:24:39Z
language: en
author: "Viorica Rusica"
section: "Political"
source: radiomoldova.md
---

# Maia Sandu, interview for Politico: "There is a serious discussion about our ability to defend ourselves or whether we should be part of a larger alliance"

> Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is prompting soul-searching in neighboring Moldova about whether the country needs to shift away from its constitutionally-enshrined neutrality and lock itself into a “larger alliance.” This was announced by the President of the Republic of Moldova in an interview for POLITICO.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is prompting soul-searching in neighboring Moldova about whether the country needs to shift away from its constitutionally-enshrined neutrality and lock itself into a “larger alliance.” This was announced by the President of the Republic of Moldova in an interview for POLITICO.

![](https://storage.radiomoldova.md/images/9ed1b998-d574-4dc9-9fbc-370e182c8064.jpg)

When asked about potential NATO accession, Moldova’s President Maia Sandu said in an interview with POLITICO the country was still weighing its next step, and whether it would require a constitutional change to do so.

“Now, there is a serious discussion … about our capacity to defend ourselves, whether we can do it ourselves, or whether we should be part of a larger alliance,” she said. “And if we come, at some point, to the conclusion as a nation that we need to change neutrality, this should happen through a democratic process.”

Although Moldova is not a member of NATO, it does cooperate with the organisation and contributes to the NATO-led peacekeeping force in Kosovo.
Sandu, along with other leaders, met with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg in New York during the United Nations General Assembly in September last year. 

Moldova’s foreign minister, Nicu Popescu, attended December’s NATO meeting in Bucharest — the first time a Moldovan foreign minister has participated in a NATO ministerial. At that gathering, allies reconfirmed support for Moldova, including through the provision of training for Moldovan defense forces.