Moldova declares a state of emergency over energy as fears of Russian gas shortage loom

CHISINAU, Moldova — Moldova’s parliament on Friday voted in favor of imposing a state of emergency in the energy sector over fears that Russia could leave the European Union candidate country without sufficient natural gas supplies this winter. Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean said his country faces an “exceptional situation” in which Moscow could deliberately weaponize energy flows to destabilize the country, and potentially leave people “in the middle of winter without heat and electricity.” Russian energy giant Gazprom supplies the gas-operated Kuciurgan plant, which generates electricity that powers a significant portion of Moldova proper. “It is clear that these crises are deliberately provoked, and their goal is to create panic and chaos.” He added that a cessation of natural gas could trigger economic and humanitarian crises, but vowed that nobody in Moldova would be left “in the cold and dark.” Transnistria, which broke away after a short war in 1992 and is not recognized by most countries, also declared its own state of emergency this week in case the region does not receive gas supplies. Sebastian Burduja, Romania’s energy minister, said late Thursday that Romania has the resources to support Moldova “if the situation demands it,” saying it would be “a duty … in the face of the aggressions coming from the east.” In October, Moldova’s pro-Western President Maia Sandu won a second term in office, and a referendum voted in favor of securing the country’s path toward the EU, in two votes overshadowed by ongoing claims of Russian interference to derail the country’s westward shift in recent years.