Moldovan opposition leader claims Chisinau devising military provocation in Transnistria

An opposition leader from Moldova has claimed that the country's President Maia Sandu and Premier Dorin Recean are devising a plan to conduct a military provocation in the region of Transnistria in the month of April. Addressing a briefing on Friday, MP Marina Tauber, the vice chairman of Moldovan opposition party Sor, said that intel gathered by agencies has indicated that the military provocation will take place.

"Sandu and Recean are preparing a military provocation for April 17 in Transnistria with the aim of involving our country in the conflict in neighboring Ukraine. We recently obtained this information from foreign intelligence services," she said, according to TASS.

While she did not elucidate any further details, she did mention that army uniforms and other equipment had been sent to Romania to wage the imminent operation. "Last week, 10,000 Moldovan police uniforms and 10,000 Moldovan army uniforms were sent to Romania. This was done so as to involve a foreign military contingent in military operations on Moldovan soil," Tauber said.

Fear of halt in Russian gas supply looms over Moldova

The opposition figure's claim is yet to gain confirmation from Moldova's government. Meanwhile, it was reported earlier this week that the eastern European country has been gripped in fear that Russian energy giant Gazprom might entirely shut down gas supplies to it due to the war between Russia and Ukraine.

According to Moldovan Energy Minister Victor Parlikov, the supply would be halted “at a certain stage" as the administration scrambles to find a solution to it. In a conversation with Moldovan TV channel Vocea Basarabiei, the minister said that if the circumstance occurs, then “Chisinau would also have to deal with an energy crisis in Transdnistria." “Now all the gas that reaches the left bank of the Dniester is de facto free. The advantage of this situation is that we buy electricity at a better price than at its alternative cost,” he said.