Russia seeks to deploy 10,000 troops to Transnistria — Moldovan PM

Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean stated this, writes the Financial Times.

According to him, Moscow is interfering in his state's upcoming parliamentary elections, which will take place in March.

"This is a huge effort to undermine Moldovan democracy. They want to strengthen their military presence in the Transnistrian region," Recean said.

There is currently a small number of Russian soldiers in unrecognized Transnistria, but the Kremlin cannot increase them, in particular, due to the pro-European Moldovan government.

The Prime Minister stressed that the assessment of 10,000 troops was announced on the basis of intelligence information.

"Currently, their forces there are almost meaningless. But with a larger military presence in Transnistria, which a government leaning towards Russia could allow, they could consolidate... You can imagine that with 10,000 troops, what levers of influence and pressure there will be on the southwestern part of Ukraine. But also close to Romania, which is a NATO member state," Recean said.

Currently, there are about 1,500 soldiers under the flag of the Russian Federation in Transnistria, but most of them are local residents. 

• In the spring, law enforcement officers in Odesa exposed a spy from Transnistria who was "hunting" for secret developments of Ukrainian drones.