When Militarization “Walks Over the Dead”

Regular reports of deaths among National Army personnel should not hinder the government’s plans to continue joint projects with Brussels aimed at militarizing the country

Two months ago, Parliament considered a motion of no confidence against Defense Minister Anatolie Nosatii, which the opposition had initiated back in February. At that time, following yet another series of military deaths, 42 lawmakers signed the motion calling for the minister’s resignation. On January 20, a contract soldier died from a gunshot wound in Floresti, and on February 12, a similar incident occurred involving a conscript. The grounds for the minister’s dismissal are more than substantial, especially since the opposition has accumulated enough grievances against the defense ministry. For example, the Court of Accounts uncovered violations in the use of budget funds, without even counting the funds from Brussels. However, corruption, embezzlement, nepotism, and other abuses are one thing, but deaths in the army are quite another. Over the past two years, there have already been nine serious incidents and seven or eight deaths, five of which have been classified as suicides. Some shot themselves, while others hanged themselves. Earlier, the Ombudsman shed light in a report on the grim reality within the ranks of the National Army: in the last two years alone, 28 cases of abuse have been officially recorded. This refers to the very same Soviet-era hazing tradition that, by all accounts, still persists in the country’s military garrisons. The opposition has calculated that one soldier dies every three months – and this is during peacetime. Or rather formal peacetime. After all, according to the authorities, the country “stands on the front lines of the free and democratic world, facing hybrid and even military threats from the authoritarian regime in the Kremlin”. This is how Moldova’s situation has been described over the past four years. Based on this logic of “informal heightened military readiness”, such death statistics are likely already viewed by officials as something acceptable or “within the bounds of normalcy”. At the very least, that was the impression given by the head of the defense ministry when he confidently defended his portfolio against attacks from the parliamentary rostrum. Aware of his role in transforming the country’s military into a modern and functional instrument (under the auspices of European partners, of course), capable of solving assigned tasks by force, Anatolie Nosatii, no less than the PAS deputies, denounced the opposition for its nostalgia for the Soviet past and accused its representatives of dereliction of duty in previous years. He called the media’s calls for his resignation outright nonsense. The minister reported that investigations into all the incidents that had occurred had revealed no violations, and therefore, there were allegedly no grounds for complaints against him. Overall, Nosatii behaved with confidence and defiance, feeling the full backing of the PAS behind him. The Speaker of Parliament at the time described Nosatii, along with Bolea, as one of the most effective ministers, particularly in terms of managing funds. Indeed, he is acquiring radars, armored vehicles, and artillery systems; building a new military base; actively adopting drones; constantly increasing combat readiness; participating in all military exercises with Western partners; and referring to neutrality as a restriction imposed from outside. In short, he is an extremely useful person for the ruling party. The militarization schedule is laid out literally day by day. No resignation possible as you see. A week ago, the minister personally met with the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, during her visit, showcased the achievements of the Moldovan army, and secured a promise to increase funding from the European Peace Fund to 120 million euros annually. But just two days have passed, and there is shooting in the army again – not only at soldiers, but also at civilians who, for unknown reasons, find themselves in the barracks. The police’s initial report now seems almost absurd: “A contract soldier wounded a conscript with his service weapon, and a minor who had come to visit a relative and witnessed the incident died of shock and cardiac arrest”. The National Army’s own statement provided even fewer details. It merely reported that a servicemember had been wounded, without even mentioning the 16-year-old teenager who died as a result of the shooting. Apparently, this is due to the logic behind official statistics: if the deceased is not a servicemember, then formally his death does not fall under the Ministry of Defense’s responsibility. And it doesn’t matter that the entire incident took place on military base grounds. Later, the police clarified that he had not died simply from “shock” after all. The cause of death was, in fact, a gunshot wound. People familiar with the situation from the inside will confirm that military units are in a state of chaos. Soldiers bring in bags of food, wine, and other trappings of a fun youth culture. Hazing has taken on new forms and gained new momentum. The presence of outsiders in the units has long been the norm. European guests are shown the pretty facades, behind which a completely different picture lies hidden. Officials are trying to keep quiet about the numerous incidents in the military. If it is impossible to conceal what has happened – as in the case of a death – standard statements are issued announcing an investigation, which then conclude with the usual assertions that “no violations were found”. It is telling that, following the latest incident, the defense minister did not address media until three days later. And the main message boiled down to one thing: there can be no talk of resignation until the investigation is complete. Against this backdrop, the shift in tone from the PAS leadership is noteworthy. They are now speaking of the minister’s achievements without their former enthusiasm, acknowledging that he is “deeply distressed”, and promising to make a possible decision “jointly”. Furthermore, the very next day after the incident, a post appeared on Anatolie Nosatii’s official page expressing pride in the Moldovan peacekeepers, followed by a matter-of-fact announcement of the renaming of the “General Staff of the National Army” to the “General Staff of Defense”. In other words, the dogs bark, but the caravan moves on. It is clear that yet another violent death within the military is viewed merely as collateral damage – one that is not even considered a reason to seriously analyze the situation in the army, reevaluate the treatment of personnel, or abandon the superficial optimism surrounding supposed achievements. Of course, the ruling party understands that recurring scandals involving abuse of power within government agencies – especially law enforcement agencies – that result in loss of life cannot be completely ignored. Our society reacts extremely sensitively to such situations. The case of Ludmila Vartic, in which a PAS official was implicated for attempting to cover up the truth about the violence and then destroy evidence, is still being actively discussed on social media. Therefore, Prime Minister Alexandru Munteanu states that he has taken the investigation into the latest shooting under his personal control, but at the same time expresses support for his minister, who is genuinely perplexed by the calls for his resignation. The sole purpose of all these ostentatious displays of sympathy is to weather the acute phase of the scandal and public outrage, and then continue the course toward the militarization of the country, even at the cost of human lives. Against this backdrop, the latest flyover of an unidentified drone through the country’s airspace proved to be most timely for the authorities.