Moldovan PM accuses Russia of repeated airspace violations at UN

Moldovan Prime Minister Vasile Tofan on Saturday directly accused Russia of repeatedly violating his country's airspace with unmanned drones, telling the UN General Assembly that such incursions risk becoming normalized unless met with firm international condemnation.

Airspace violations at UN

Speaking during the high-level week in New York, Tofan stressed that Chișinău cannot accept repeated violations as routine. "We must not grow accustomed to it. Repetition does not make violation acceptable," he said, urging the international community to maintain pressure on Moscow. Tofan noted that while Moldova could not prevent the war from beginning next door in Ukraine, it retained agency in its response to the crisis.

Support for Ukraine

"We welcome people fleeing the war. We kept transport routes open. We reduced the cost of rail transit for Ukrainian cargo with grain," Tofan said, adding that "these decisions were not always cost-free or politically easy at home." The prime minister framed Moldova's European Union accession — candidate status was granted in 2022 and negotiations are now underway — as an exercise in democratic sovereignty rather than geopolitical realignment.

European path

"Joining the European Union is not about replacing one sphere of influence with another," Tofan said, referencing Moldova's Soviet past. "It is our citizens exercising their right to choose, choose democracy, choose prosperity, choose peace." Tofan said Moldova's European trajectory proceeds alongside strengthened cooperation with the United States, particularly regarding security assistance, energy independence, and national resilience. Accession talks with Brussels opened after Chișinău received candidate status in June 2022, marking a decisive pivot from Moscow's historical dominance in the region.