German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on Monday gave a positive assessment of the support provided to Moldova in fending off hybrid Russian attacks and pledged further assistance.
“With our help, Moldova was able to stabilize its economy, withstand Russia’s hybrid attacks and get inflation under control,” Baerbock said during the 5th Support Conference for Moldova, held in the capital Chișinău.
“And we will not stop; We will continue to support Moldova in very concrete ways,” she added.
Baerbock criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin, stating that he had wanted to plunge Moldova into chaos and cut off the country’s gas supply.
Given the collapse of imports from Russia, that meant Moldova’s economy plummeted and inflation rose to nearly 30%, she said.
Also, Putin is fuelling tensions with pro-Russian separatists in Moldova, Baerbock said. “But instead of chaos and collapse, Putin has achieved the opposite in Moldova: The country has moved closer to the European Union.”
Moldova is split between pro-European and pro-Russian forces.
Like Ukraine, Moldova has been a candidate for EU membership since 2022.
It is due to hold a referendum on October 20 alongside the presidential election to decide whether EU membership should be enshrined in the constitution as a goal.
Germany, France and Romania launched the Moldova Support Platform in April 2022.
The talks are set to continue on Tuesday focusing on Moldova’s economic development, secure energy supply and judicial reform.
To strengthen Moldova’s resilience against Russian influence, a bilateral agreement on cooperation in the cybersector is also planned, amid accusations by Moldova that Moscow is behind destabilization and disinformation campaigns.
