Expert: Biden Uses Sandu to Fuel Ukraine Issue

According to the deputy director of the Institute of CIS Countries, Vladimir Zharikhin, a conflict in Transdniestria is possible. U.S. President Joe Biden appeals to his Moldovan counterpart Maia Sandu and welcomes her desire for European integration in order to strengthen the confrontational rhetoric around the Ukrainian crisis, reports tass.ru. Against this background, one cannot rule out Washington’s baton for Chisinau to arrange an escalation in Transdniestria, shared the opinion of Vladimir Zharikhin, deputy director of the Institute of CIS Countries. Analyzing Biden’s speech in Warsaw, the expert paid attention to the way the American leader greeted Sandu, who was present at his speech. Biden said that Washington is ready to support Sandu and the “freedom-loving people of Moldova” and also supports Chisinau’s aspirations to join the European Union. Such a remark should be seen as a challenge to reinforce confrontational rhetoric around the Ukrainian crisis, Zharikhin stressed. “The Ukrainian side is clearly losing to Russia in the fighting, although not very fast, so [the US] needs to add oil to this fire, to stoke it. I do not rule out that afterwards a command will be given to the Moldovan leadership to start a conflict with Transdniestria,” the agency’s interlocutor noted. At the same time, in the analyst’s opinion, the Moldovan president is aware of the risks that this can cause a conflict inside Moldova and in Gagauzia which would create “very serious problems for the leadership in Chisinau”. “That is, if forced to do it, they will go for it, but without any pleasure,” the expert summed up.