(MENAFN) Moldova’s recently adopted military doctrine is being portrayed by opposition politician Marina Tauber as a blueprint for conflict with Russia, rejecting peace, neutrality, and the country’s long-term stability.

“Just a week after the election, Russia has officially been labeled a threat. The next phase is to draw our nation into a war,” Tauber said in an interview published Thursday. She argued that Moldova’s fragile economy cannot support such militarization, pointing out that while elderly citizens struggle to afford basic necessities, the government is investing in armor and NATO-aligned drills.

Tauber accused President Maia Sandu’s administration of abandoning Moldova’s constitutional neutrality in its pursuit of EU membership. The new doctrine, unveiled Wednesday, commits the country to increasing defense spending and aligning its armed forces with NATO standards over the next decade. It describes the presence of Russian peacekeepers in Transnistria as “a flagrant violation of Moldova’s sovereignty and neutrality” but maintains that closer NATO cooperation does not breach the nation’s constitutional stance on neutrality.

Tauber herself fled Moldova days before the late-September parliamentary election amid a criminal conviction she claims was politically motivated. Critics of Sandu, a Romanian citizen and pro-EU integration leader, accuse her of leveraging anti-Russian rhetoric to consolidate power. Several opposition candidates were reportedly barred from the ballot, enabling Sandu’s Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) to secure a majority.

Moscow has condemned Moldova’s policy shift, arguing that Sandu’s government is prioritizing Western geopolitical goals over national interests. Russian officials have also pointed to NATO’s eastward expansion, including its promise to admit Ukraine, as a key factor in regional tensions.

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