Parliament Approved National Defense Strategy for 2024-2034

The document was supported by MPs of the ruling Party of Action and Solidarity, while the opposition criticized the draft, calling it a step towards the “country’s militarization”. One of the goals of the strategy is that by 2030, the country’s defense budget should amount to at least 1% of GDP. It is noted that the movement towards this goal has already started, infotag.md reported. “The first step towards implementation was taken after the outbreak of war in Ukraine, by increasing the resources allocated from the defense budget from 0.39% of GDP in 2022 to 0.55% in 2023. At the same time, about 70% of this increase will be allocated to the modernization of the armed forces. Moreover, in addition to national financial resources, assistance through bilateral partnerships with the EU and NATO will be used,” the document says. It is planned to increase the size of the National Army with these funds, as “Moldova has the smallest armed forces in Europe in relation to the population (6,500 servicemen)”. The Strategy also takes into account Moldova’s status of permanent neutrality, stressing that “Russia’s illegal military presence on the territory of the Republic of Moldova creates difficulties for the legal functionality and international recognition of this status”. “Neutrality is not an obstacle to the further development of cooperation with partner states and organizations in the field of security and defense. Circumstances make it necessary to strengthen national defense capabilities through the allocation of significant resources, increased cooperation and/or multilateral partnerships with several states and organizations in order to ensure the security of the state and its population...,” the Strategy states. In this context, Moldova, as an EU candidate country, intends to develop security and defense cooperation with the EU and NATO in order to “integrate into the EU security and defense structure”. Among the risks mentioned in the new strategy is the possible expansion of the war zone in Ukraine to the borders of Moldova, especially in the Odesa oblast, which “may create immediate preconditions for aggressive actions against Moldova as well”. It is planned that the implementation of the strategy will allow Moldova to consolidate its role as “a provider of regional and international security and a reliable partner”. Defense Minister Anatolie Nosatii, who presented the draft from the rostrum of parliament, said that the strategy envisages “radical changes” in the defense field and a return to the prestige of serving in the armed forces. PAS deputy Mihail Druta said that the implementation of this strategy is necessary for “Moldova to feed its own army, not someone else’s”.