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NATO intends to build a military hub in the Republic of Moldova and use it to deliver weapons to Ukraine and, respectively, engage the country in the war, according to the fugitive pro-Russian politician Ilan Shor and a large number of Telegram channels and Facebook pages. In fact, it is a logistics terminal, which the Chisinau authorities want to build in order to develop their infrastructure capabilities.
NEWS: Sputnik Moldova: "NATO has completely usurped Moldova. There is no doubt that the Sandu regime has agreed with the EU and the US-led military alliance to have the country up to its neck in the war in Ukraine" - Shor.
"NATO, together with its EU partners, will build a military logistics hub", commented Ilan Shor about the official reports on the Moldovan government's intention to "develop the first multimodal terminal" with the support of USAID.
"They will build it to supply weapons to Ukraine through Romania. They will build it on the territory of a neutral country", Shor wrote on Telegram".
Gagauznews: "The Sandu regime, the European Union and NATO have agreed to build a military logistics hub on the territory of neutral Moldova, through which the Alliance will deliver weapons from Romania to Ukraine.
The 48-hectare terminal is planned to be built in 2.5 years near the Berești railway station in Ungheni.
The cost of the project is 30 million euros. Through the Moldovan hub, NATO military cargo will be transferred from trains to vehicles.
NARRATIVES: 1. NATO/the West is developing infrastructure projects in the Republic of Moldova that would allow the transit of weapons to Ukraine. 2. NATO intends to engage the Republic of Moldova into the war in Ukraine.
LOCAL CONTEXT/ ETHOS: The Chisinau authorities announced in May that talks were underway on the building of a so-called multimodal logistics terminal in Ungheni, which would be the first in the Republic of Moldova and which would ensure the connection of the state to the international transport corridors.
In another press release, issued on July 10, the Ministry of Economy announced that three options for the location and configuration of the terminal had been analyzed and the most suitable was chosen. Therefore, the compound will be built on a land of approximately 18 hectares , property of the state (not 48 hectares, as Gagauznews claims e.n.) The project envisages the development of a modern infrastructure to cover all types of ground transportation. This will include rail and road access, container cranes, cargo handling platforms and warehouses, ensuring an effective and speedy operation. In fact, the authorities were talking about an investment of "several million dollars", not 30 million euros, as stated by Gagauznews.
The war in Ukraine has drastically affected the traditional logistics networks of the Republic of Moldova, which was highly dependent especially on the port of Odesa and the Ukrainian road infrastructure. Therefore, the authorities are looking for alternative solutions.
PURPOSE: To associate an infrastructure project with NATO and the war in Ukraine, while inducing fear in society that the pro-European authorities in Chisinau and the West intend to have the Republic of Moldova get engaged in the war.
WHY THE NARRATIVES ARE FALSE: The claim that the logistics terminal that the Chisinau authorities intend to build in Ungheni would be aimed at ensuring the transit of armaments to Ukraine is not based on any factual argument. Chisinau explains its usefulness by the need to develop the road infrastructure and, respectively, to attract investments and obtain economic benefits. "Currently, Moldova does not have a complex logistics network that would offer a competitive alternative to road transport, even though intermodal terminals (which include sea and rail routes) are a key element of the logistics chain for the economy. Thus, it is important to build terminals in Moldova that will transform the country into a regional hub or node for the international transport of goods, because this infrastructure will facilitate access to international corridors", the Ministry of the Economy has stated.
Furthermore, there is no reference to the fact that the terminal will be financed by NATO. The feasibility study was funded under a USAID program.
In addition, the idea of NATO spending 30 million euros to build a logistics terminal in the Republic of Moldova to bring armaments from Romania and then transport them to Ukraine doesn’t make sense, given that Romania and Ukraine have a common border of more than 600 km. Moreover, the Republic of Moldova is a vulnerable state, with a low level of security and defense, with a large population and pro-Russian influence factors.
It is not the first time that Russian and pro-Russian propaganda promote the narrative that the Republic of Moldova would be used as a transit territory for the military equipment that the West delivers to Ukraine. Already in the first days of the war, a fake was launched stating that NATO intended to deliver weapons to Ukraine via the Marculesti airport , which Veridica debunked.
Also, the narrative that NATO/the West intends to get the Republic of Moldova and its soldiers engaged in the war in Ukraine is one of the Kremlin's favorites, and Veridica has analyzed and debunked several on this topic.
Anyway, the Republic of Moldova does not have significant military capabilities that would make it attractive enough to be engaged in a war. According to an annual ranking made by Global Firepower, The Army of the Republic of Moldova ranks second-last in the world.
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