LUGANSK, September 23. /TASS/. NATO is looking for alternative platforms to counter Russia and is using Moldova as an additional platform for its aggressive policy against Russia, military expert Andrey Marochko has said.
"It's already becoming clear to NATO and Western military leadership that sooner or later Ukraine will suffer a defeat on the frontline. This is easy to calculate. In order to find alternative platforms for countering Russia and continuing its aggressive policy additional footholds and sites are being prepared. Moldova has been considered as an alternative since Kiev’s crackdown on Donbass began in 2014. Therefore, I do not rule out that this spot on the map could become the next hotbed of tension due to actions by the Western countries," he said.
Marochko doubts that NATO would deploy its contingents in Odessa. However, he remarked, "NATO sponsors have long been present in Odessa, conducting subversive activities against Russia. Earlier, the press bureau of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) said that the European Union "intends to occupy Moldova." Preparations are currently underway to deploy NATO troops to Ukraine's Odessa Region, and NATO military units are also concentrating in Romania near the Moldovan border.