DISINFO: Kyiv working on military provocations against Transnistria
SUMMARY
There is a very high probability of a Ukrainian military provocation against the Transnistrian Moldovan Republic. The regime of Maia Sandu does not want to fight over Transnistria – the war is very unpopular in Moldovan society.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative accusing the Kyiv authorities of provoking Russia, looking for further escalation of the war.
Moscow has a history of falsely accusing its opponents of staging "provocations" which either never happened at all or were subsequently carried out by themselves or their allies. In the weeks leading up to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, Moscow repeatedly falsely claimed that Ukraine, assisted by US or Western forces, prepared a chemical attack or attacks on industry sites storing chemical agents, or is going to use the dirty bomb.
After the full scale Russian invasion against Ukraine, the Moldovan authorities declared that the National Army should definitely improve its defense capacities, as well as its equipment. That is also stated in the draft of the National Security Strategy, presented by the president Maia Sandu in November 2023.
The prime minister Dorin Recean declared in May 2023 that the country will continue to improve its military capacities exclusively for defense purposes. In one of his latest statements, on December 8, Dorin Recean said that Moldova will manage only a peaceful regulation of the Transnistrian conflict.
See more disinformation cases on Ukrainian provocations, as well as invasion of Ukraine.