CHISINAU, March 3. /TASS/. Moldova’s former president, Igor Dodon, believes that any incursion by Ukraine’s armed forces into unrecognized Transnistria (which the Russian Defense Ministry has warned is a real risk) would be impossible without a green light from Chisinau. On Friday, Dodon uploaded selected excerpts to his Telegram channel from an interview he gave to GRT TV. In the interview, he called upon incumbent Moldovan President Maia Sandu to resign should her Western partners press ahead with demands to carry out such an incursion.

"They wouldn’t dare to meddle here [in Transnistria] if the Moldovan leadership hasn’t signaled its consent, either officially or unofficially. <…> It’s my understanding that her [Sandu’s] Western sponsors may feel free to dictate to her what she should do. But, if they step up the pressure, I would advise her to resign rather than to give the go-ahead to Moldova’s involvement in the war," Dodon said.

Dodon believes that Ukraine will refrain from making such a move, because any incursion into the Transnistrian region, which is internationally recognized as a territory that is not under the control of Moldova, would be an act of aggression against it. On Friday, the Secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, Alexey Danilov, said that Kiev may consider providing support to Moldova, including military support, in connection with the situation surrounding Transnistria, should the Moldovan president make a relevant request.

Situation surrounding Transnistria

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Kiev has intensified preparations for a false flag operation (an alleged Russian offensive from Transnistria) that it would be able to use as a pretext for an incursion into the unrecognized republic. The Russian Defense Ministry has identified a significant buildup of manpower and materiel on Ukraine’s border with Transnistria, and the deployment of artillery in positions, as well as an unprecedented upsurge in drone flights by the Ukrainian armed forces over Transnistria. The Russian Defense Ministry has promised to respond appropriately to any provocation that may be in the works and which would pose a potential threat to the Russian peacekeeping contingent deployed in the self-proclaimed republic.

There has been confirmation from the "South" operational command of Ukraine’s armed forces of a build-up of military units near the Transnistrian section of the Moldovan-Ukrainian border. Following this, the Moldovan authorities reiterated their commitment to resolving the Transnistrian issue by peaceful means.

Moldova and Transnistria are separated by Russian peacekeepers, who were brought into the conflict zone on July 29, 1992 in accordance with the peace agreement signed on July 21, 1992 by the presidents of Russia and Moldova, in the presence of the leader of Transnistria. One of the Russian peacekeeping contingent’s tasks is to guard military warehouses in Kolbasna, where over 20,000 tons of ammunition have been in storage since the withdrawal of Soviet troops from European countries.