CHISINAU -- German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht has said Berlin is prepared to provide drones and other military equipment to Moldova as Chisinau looks warily at Russia’s intensions in the region following its invasion of Ukraine.
In a joint news conference with counterpart Anatolie Nosatii on October 1, Lambrecht said that “I would not be revealing any secrets if I say that it is about the purchase of drones and other equipment."
She also said the German military is ready to provide military training to Moldova, which has a long border with Ukraine and has been hosting hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees since the start of Moscow's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
Russia has some 1,500 troops in Moldova's Moscow-backed separatist region of Transdniester, a sliver of land sandwiched between Moldova proper and Ukraine.
In recent months, Transdniester separatists claimed that Kyiv had orchestrated what they claimed were shootings, explosions, and drone incursions, raising fears that Moldova could be drawn into the conflict in Ukraine.
Moldovan President Maia Sandu in August marked the 31st anniversary of the small nation’s independence following the collapse of the Soviet Union with a speech that included a condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and a push for the country's eventual EU membership.
“Russia's unjust war against Ukraine clearly shows us the price of freedom," she told a crowd at the Great National Assembly Square in Chisinau.
Nosatii welcomed the aid his country has received from Berlin and said German assistance has been used to consolidate and repair weapons depots, inspect and secure ammunition storage, and to deactivate and make safe those that pose a danger.
Lambrecht said Berlin also realizes the importance of supporting Moldova in the wake of energy shortages stemming from the war in Ukraine.
Lambrecht on October 1 also made a surprise visit to the Ukrainian port city of Odesa, vowing to provide further military aid to Ukraine as it looks to defend against the Russian invasion.
