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NewsRescue
Moldova may withdraw from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), an organisation made up of former Soviet republics, according to Igor Grosu, the speaker of the country’s parliament. The official stated that he is already working on legislation that would allow Chisinau to leave the group.
Grosu told Moldova’s NewsMaker news source on Monday that he has “initiated the procedure of Moldova’s departure from the CIS’ inter-parliamentary assembly.” He went on to say that this was the “first step towards leaving the Commonwealth.”
The speaker claims that he has previously discussed his plan with citizens, the ruling Action and Solidarity Party, and President Maia Sandu.
According to the media site, Grosu aims to offer his initiative to Prime Minister Dorin Recean and prepare a bill in the near future.
“After Russia, the CIS’s founder, barbarically attacked Ukraine, this organisation can no longer be called a commonwealth,” the speaker contended.
The Commonwealth of Independent States was established in late 1991, during the final days of the Soviet Union. Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan are now members of the organisation.
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov expressed fear in early February to Russia’s RIA Novosti and Rossiya 24 media sources that Moldova may become a new “anti-Russia,” similar to Ukraine.
He said that the West had installed a pliant president in the country “through some very peculiar methods, far from free and democratic [ones].”
Sandu, according to Lavrov, is “rushing into NATO” and is open to the possibility of uniting Moldova with neighbouring Romania.
Igor Dodon, Sandu’s predecessor, warned in January that she may convert Moldova into “cannon fodder” in NATO’s proxy conflict with Russia.
In a Telegram post, Dodon accused the current president of dragging the country into NATO while “acting on orders from overseas masters.” According to the former leader, such a step would be contrary to the neutrality policy contained in the Moldovan Constitution, as well as the will of the Moldovan people, as evidenced by opinion polls.
Sandu revealed to the Western press earlier that month that “there is a serious discussion” going on in Chisinau “about our capacity to defend ourselves, whether we can do it ourselves, or whether we should be part of a larger alliance.”
While she has avoided mentioning NATO membership openly, Sandu has regularly implemented pro-Western measures since her election in 2020.
In recent years, Moldova has actively cooperated with NATO, deploying troops to join the military bloc’s presence in Kosovo.
Last June, the country was also given EU candidate status.