CHISINAU -- Moldovan Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita says she sees no immediate threat of Russia’s war against Ukraine spreading to her country, even as concerns grow that Moscow’s military aims may be widening.
“Our analysis shows that there are no imminent risks of the expansion of the war in Moldova,” Gavrilita said told RFE/RL's Moldovan Service in an exclusive interview from the capital, Chisinau, on May 5.
Fears of a spillover from the Ukraine conflict have expanded since a Russian general said last month that the aim of Moscow's unprovoked invasion was to create a land corridor through southern Ukraine to Transdniester, a sliver of land inside Moldova held by Kremlin-backed separatists.
Transdniester, which lies strategically between Moldova proper and Ukraine, declared independence from Chisinau in 1990, and the two sides fought a brief war in 1992 that was quelled by Russian troops intervening on the side of separatists.
Transdniester claimed last week that explosions hit the self-styled security ministry, a military unit, and a Russian-owned radio tower, while shots had been allegedly fired at a village housing a Russian arms depot, which Moscow called "acts of terrorism."
Ukraine has said Russia wants to destabilize the region to create a pretext for a military intervention.
Russia still maintains some 1,500 soldiers in Transdniester, who are said to be guarding a huge Soviet-era arms depot.
Besides the troops ostensibly guarding the depot, Russia has another 400-500 soldiers in Transdniester that have been labeled as peacekeepers since the end of the 1992 war.
Gavrilita said Moldova, the poorest country in Europe, would not be able to “resist long” without Western support if attacked by Russia-backed separatists.
The minister spoke with RFE/RL a day after the European Union announced it will “significantly increase” support for Moldova. She said that support does not include lethal weapons.
SEE ALSO: First Ukraine, Now Moldova? Is The Kremlin About To Expand Its War?Gavrilita said she does not think a Russian attack is likely because Moldova is a neutral country that "never wanted -- and did not make any efforts -- to join NATO."
Russian President Vladimir Putin tried to justify his decision to invade Ukraine on the grounds that the country was seeking to join the Western-led military alliance, claiming it was an existential threat.
Ukraine had been a neutral country when Russia invaded for the first time in 2014, seizing its Crimean Peninsula following the overthrow of Kremlin-leaning President Viktor Yanukovych.
The successor Ukrainian government made joining NATO a priority to defend against further Kremlin aggression. Putin has also claimed that southern Ukraine is historical Russian land.
Gavrilita said a Russian attack on her country would backfire because many Moldovans are dual citizens of Romania, a member of the EU and NATO.
An invasion of Moldova would galvanize European public opinion and lead to "a much wider involvement from other states" against Russia, she said.