Press Review // "Neutrality won't protect you if a tank comes towards you"; The Republic of Moldova "geopolitically condemned" to follow its European path
The visit of the NATO Secretary General to Chisinau, the fight against electoral corruption, the digitalization of public services, but also the phenomenon of wind erosion of soils are some of the topics covered by national publications.
Several publications reported on a discussion held by President Maia Sandu with the Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Mark Rutte, who was passing through the Republic of Moldova. The two officials addressed the security developments in the region and discussed efforts to enhance peace and cooperation between the Republic of Moldova and the North Atlantic Alliance, as reported by Ziarul Național. For over 30 years, the Republic of Moldova has been cooperating with NATO through the Partnership for Peace program. This collaboration respects Moldova's constitutional neutrality while contributing to the safety of its citizens.
Prime Minister Dorin Recean, in an interview with journalist Dmytro Gordon, expressed that neutrality does not protect against military aggression. More citizens start to understand the importance of having a self-defence capacity. Recean stated that the only country disregarding Moldova's neutrality is the Russian Federation. He recalled that in 1992, Russia promised to respect Moldova's neutrality if it was enshrined in the Constitution; despite this, Russian military presence remains.
According to the Deschide.md portal, over 140,000 citizens risk facing severe sanctions due to electoral corruption, with cases arising from the presidential elections and the EU accession referendum held last fall. Viorel Cernăuțeanu, the Head of the General Inspectorate of Police, said that the proceeds from vote-selling will not be enough to cover fines. Experts cited by Moldova 1 suggest that while tightening sanctions could be effective, it cannot completely eradicate the phenomenon. Mihaela Duca-Anghelici, head of the analysis and research team at Promo-LEX Association, noted that many citizens who accepted electoral bribes did so without understanding the risks involved. This widespread electoral corruption is a serious issue, and for it to have a deterrent effect, it is crucial to see the process through while respecting the procedural rights of all involved.
An article published by Veridica is titled "The Republic of Moldova: 'Condemned' to maintain Its european course." Economically, Moldova has long been integrated into the European community, partly due to embargoes imposed by Moscow. Geopolitically, as long as Ukraine is resisting Russian invasion and aligns itself with the West, any shift toward Russia for Moldova would likely isolate it from the global community, depriving it of external support, which primarily comes from the West. In this context, Ion Tăbârță highlighted that Parliament has increased the state budget for this year significantly, with additional funding from the European Union. This "Budget + PLUS" represents the largest financial package for investment and economic growth in Moldova's history. Despite criticism from the opposition claiming these increases are an electoral ploy that will burden citizens with loans, the budget increase is a tangible result of the ongoing negotiations for Moldova's EU accession, according to Tăbârță's analysis in Veridica.
Moldpres reports that the production capacity for renewable energy has increased eightfold in the past four years, now nearing 650 MW. On days with favorable weather, renewable sources provide up to 30% of the energy consumed in Moldova; by contrast, only 3% of consumption was met by green energy in 2020. The capacity for renewable energy is expected to grow by an additional 165 MW, thanks to a recently finalized tender for constructing large-capacity wind and photovoltaic parks.
Radio Chisinau writes that more than half of public services are fully or partially digitized and are available 24 hours a day, from any corner of the world. The Republic of Moldova aims to digitize 75% of public services for the business environment by the end of this year, and to become a one hundred percent digital state by 2030. The Republic of Moldova marks 15 years of digital transformation, a period in which the digitization of public services generated savings of over 41 billion lei, according to the authorities.
TV8 reports that from the summer, we will issue birth certificates, register marriages, and even divorces online. For this, we will only need the internet and an electronic signature, the Electronic Government Agency informs. The authorities believe that we have the potential to become regional leaders in digitalization, and for this, they propose to have all public services available online by 2030.
Realitatea.md warns about the phenomenon of wind erosion, which seriously affects the quality of soils in the Republic of Moldova. The publication is based on the findings made by EcoPresa journalists, who drew attention to some dust storms observed in Căușeni. It is not from the desert, but from our fields, left without vegetation and protective strips, the sources explain. According to the journalists, "fertile soil is disappearing". Today, of the approximately 30,000 ha of existing forest strips, over half are degraded or completely non-functional, reports realitatea.md.
