Editing Armed Forces of the Republic of Moldova

{{Short description|Combined military forces of Moldova}}
{{Infobox national military
| name = Armed Forces of the Republic of Moldova
| native_name = {{lang|ro|Forțele Armate ale Republicii Moldova}}
| image = File:Armed_Forces_of_Moldova_logo.png
| alt = 
| caption = Emblem of the National Army
| image2 = Flag of the Armed Forces of Moldova.svg
| alt2 = 
| caption2 = Flag of the National Army
| motto = {{lang|ro|Pentru Patria Noastra}} (For our Motherland)
| founded = 2 September 1992
| current_form = 
| disbanded = 
| branches = {{Tree list}}
* [[Moldovan National Army|National Army]]
** {{flagicon image|Flag of the Armed Forces of Moldova.svg}} [[Moldovan Ground Forces|Land Force Command]]
** {{Flagicon image|Roundel of Moldova.svg|border=|size=25px}} [[Moldovan Air Force|Air Force Command]]
*[[Trupele de Carabinieri]]
{{Tree list/end}}
| headquarters = [[Chișinău]]
| flying_hours = 
| website = {{URL|https://www.army.md/}}
<!-- Leadership -->| commander-in-chief = {{Flagicon image|Flag of the President of Moldova.svg|size=23px}} [[Maia Sandu]]
| commander-in-chief_title = [[President of Moldova|Supreme Commander]]
| chief minister = {{Flagicon image|Flag of the Minister of Defense of Moldova.svg|size=23px}} Colonel [[Anatolie Nosatîi]]
| chief minister_title = [[Ministry of Defense (Moldova)|Minister of Defence]]
| minister = [[Daniella Misail-Nichitin]]
| minister_title = [[Ministry of Internal Affairs (Moldova)|Minister of Internal Affairs]]
| commander = {{Flagicon image|Flag of the Armed Forces of Moldova.svg|size=23px}} Colonel [[Vitalie Micov]]
| commander_title = [[Chief of the General Staff (Moldova)|Chief of the General Staff]]
<!-- Manpower -->| age = 18
| conscription = 1 year<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timpul.md/articol/cum-are-loc-serviciul-militar-obligatoriu-in-republica-moldova-ce-pedeapsa-primesc-daca-nu-doresc-sa-fac-acest-serviciu-95829.html|title=Cum are loc serviciul militar obligatoriu în Republica Moldova? Ce pedeapsă primesc dacă nu doresc să fac acest serviciu?|date=5 August 2016 |access-date=2022-03-16|archive-date=2021-02-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210203131202/https://www.timpul.md/articol/cum-are-loc-serviciul-militar-obligatoriu-in-republica-moldova-ce-pedeapsa-primesc-daca-nu-doresc-sa-fac-acest-serviciu-95829.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
| manpower_data = 2005 est.
| manpower_age = 18&ndash;49
| available = 1,066,459
| available_f = 
| fit = 693,913
| fit_f = 
| reaching = 43,729
| reaching_f = 
| active = 6,500 professional personnel + 2,000 annual conscripts (2022) <ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/moldova-military-defense-outdated-underfunded/32095231.html|title=Defense Minister Says 90 Percent of Moldova's Military Equipment is Outdated |newspaper=Radiofreeeurope/Radioliberty }}</ref>
| ranked = 
| reserve = 77,500 (2024 est.)<ref>{{cite web | title=Moldova Military Strength | url=https://www.globalfirepower.com/country-military-strength-detail.php?country_id=moldova | website=Global Firepower | access-date=7 November 2024}}</ref>
| deployed = <!-- Financial -->
| amount = $112 million (2024) <ref name="rferl.org">{{cite news | url=https://m.bloknot-moldova.ru/news/moldova-budet-investirovat-v-bezopasnost-i-militar-1686940 | title=Defense Minister Says 90 Percent of Moldova's Military Equipment is Outdated | newspaper=Radiofreeeurope/Radioliberty }}</ref>
| percent_GDP = 0.55% <ref name="rferl.org"/>
<!-- Industrial -->| domestic_suppliers = 
| foreign_suppliers = {{flag|Azerbaijan}}<br />{{flag|Czech Republic}}<br />{{flag|France}}<br />{{flag|Germany}}<br />{{flag|Italy}}<br />{{flag|Norway}}<br />{{flag|Poland}}<br />{{flag|Portugal}}<br />{{flag|Romania}}<br />{{flag|Spain}}<br />{{flag|Sweden}}<br />{{flag|Turkey}}<br />{{flag|Ukraine}}<br />{{flag|United Kingdom}}<br />{{flag|United States}}
| imports = 
| exports = <!-- Related articles -->
| history = 
| ranks = [[Ranks of the Armed Forces of Moldova]]
}}

The '''[[Armed Forces]] of the [[Moldova|Republic of Moldova]]''' ({{langx|ro|Forțele Armate ale Republicii Moldova}}) consist of the [[Moldovan National Army|National Army]] (which is divided into the [[Moldovan Ground Forces|Land Forces Command]] and the [[Moldovan Air Force|Air Forces Command]]) and the [[Trupele de Carabinieri]]  under the [[Ministry of Internal Affairs (Moldova)|Ministry of Internal Affairs]].<ref>{{cite journal |title=Decision on the Military Doctrine of the Republic of Moldova |journal=Official Gazette |date=14 July 1995 |volume=38 |url=http://lex.justice.md/index.php?action=view&view=doc&lang=1&id=306988 |access-date=4 July 2023 |language=ro}}</ref> Until 2012, the [[Moldovan Border Police]] (then known as the Border Troops) belonged to the armed forces.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Law on the Border Police |journal=Official Gazette |date=20 April 2012 |volume=283 |url=http://lex.justice.md/index.php?action=view&view=doc&lang=1&id=342897 |access-date=4 July 2023 |language=ro}}</ref>

== History ==
{{see also|Transnistria conflict|Transnistria War}}
On 2 November 1990, prior to the formation of the state of Moldova, the Supreme Soviet of the Moldovan SSR ordered creation of the ''Republican Guard'' ([[Romanian language|Romanian]]: Garda Republicană) as a militarized government agency. This force subsequently became the Moldovan military upon independence.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D0NBb157NSYC&q=republican+guard+%28Moldova%29&pg=PA19|title=Human Rights in Moldova: The Turbulent Dniester|last1=Dailey|first1=Erika|last2=Laber|first2=Jeri|last3=Whitman|first3=Lois|date=1993|publisher=Human Rights Watch|isbn=9781564320896|language=en|access-date=2020-10-15|archive-date=2021-05-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210510144431/https://books.google.com/books?id=D0NBb157NSYC&q=republican+guard+(Moldova)&pg=PA19|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://lex.justice.md/viewdoc.php?action=view&view=doc&id=309056&lang=1|title=6. Anularea Hotărîrii Sovietului Suprem al R.S.S. Moldova din 2 noiembrie 1990 "Cu privire la Garda republicană a Moldovei".|access-date=2017-10-29|archive-date=2017-10-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171014132854/http://lex.justice.md/viewdoc.php?action=view&view=doc&id=309056&lang=1|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0c9uESy3GXIC&q=%D1%80%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BF%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BB%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%B0%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%8F+%D0%B3%D0%B2%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B4%D0%B8%D1%8F+%28%D0%BC%D0%BE%D0%BB%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B0%29&pg=PT123|title=Семена распада: войны и конфликты на территории бывшего СССР|last=Александрович|first=Жирохов Михаил|date=2012|publisher=БХВ-Петербург|isbn=9785977508179|language=ru|access-date=2020-10-15|archive-date=2021-05-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210510150106/https://books.google.com/books?id=0c9uESy3GXIC&q=%D1%80%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BF%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BB%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%B0%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%8F+%D0%B3%D0%B2%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B4%D0%B8%D1%8F+(%D0%BC%D0%BE%D0%BB%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B0)&pg=PT123|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Moldova]] has accepted all relevant arms control obligations of the former [[Soviet Union]]. On October 30, 1992, Moldova ratified the [[Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe]], which establishes comprehensive limits on key categories of conventional military equipment and provides for the destruction of weapons in excess of those limits. It acceded to the provisions of the [[Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons|nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty]] in October 1994 in [[Washington, DC]]. It does not have nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons.

Moldova joined the [[North Atlantic Treaty Organization]]'s [[Partnership for Peace]] on March 16, 1994.

A transition to a professional force of 12,000 to 15,000 volunteers was planned at first, but when fighting erupted in 1991 between supporters of the central government in [[Chișinău]] and supporters of separatist regions ([[Transnistria conflict]]), males between eighteen and forty years of age were mobilized, and the size of Moldova's military was temporarily expanded to meet the demands of the [[Transnistria War]].<ref name="LOCM" /> In early 1995, the armed forces totaled some 11,000 volunteers, and there were plans to gradually create a professional army.

Following the [[2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine|Russian invasion of Ukraine]] and [[2022 Transnistria attacks|a series of explosions]] in [[Transnistria]] in 2022, the [[President of Moldova]] [[Maia Sandu]] declared on 27 April of that year that the Moldovan army had been left largely neglected for three decades and that it was unable to defend Moldova in the face of danger. She said the Moldovan army would go through a process of modernization and professionalization in the future.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://moldova.europalibera.org/a/maia-sandu-r-moldova-nu-are-un-scut-efectiv-%C3%AEn-fa%C8%9Ba-primejdiei-/31823719.html|title=Maia Sandu: "R. Moldova nu are un scut efectiv în fața primejdiei"|publisher=Radio Europa Liberă Moldova|date=27 April 2022|language=ro}}</ref> Later, on 4 May, the [[President of the European Council]] [[Charles Michel]] said that the [[European Union]] would provide aid to Moldova, including additional military equipment for its armed forces. The support would come from the Instrument contributing to Stability and Peace and would not include lethal weaponry. This caused controversy among the socialist opposition leaders of the time, who strove for further cooperation with Russia.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://intellinews.com/eu-to-support-moldovan-army-but-opposition-socialists-call-for-russian-military-presence-243412|title=EU to support Moldovan army — but opposition Socialists call for Russian military presence|publisher=[[bne IntelliNews]]|date=5 May 2022}}</ref>

== General Staff ==
{{See also|Chief of the General Staff (Moldova)}}

The General Staff of the National Army is currently composed of the following:

* Headquarters of the General Staff ([[Chișinău]])
** Land Force Command
** Air Force Command
* Personnel Directorate
* Operations Directorate
* Logistics Directorate
* Strategic Planning Directorate
* Communication and Information Systems Directorate
* Education, Training and Doctrine Directorate
* Planning, Finance and Monitoring
* Legal Section
* Medical Section
* [[Military police]]

==Structure==
===National Army===
{{Main|Moldovan National Army}}

====Land Force Command====
[[File:Soldiers of Moldovan army.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Moldovan soldiers from the 2nd brigade in June 2004.]]
At the beginning of 1994, the [[Moldovan Ground Forces]] (under the Ministry of Defense) consisted of 9,800 men organized into three motor rifle brigades, one artillery brigade, and one reconnaissance/assault battalion.<ref name="LOCM">[[Library of Congress Country Studies]]: Moldova, [http://rs6.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field%28DOCID+md0068%29 The Armed Forces] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220501225527/http://rs6.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd%2Fcstdy%3A%40field%28DOCID+md0068%29 |date=2022-05-01 }}, June 1995</ref> [[The Library of Congress Country Studies]] wrote that its armaments consisted of fifty-six [[ballistic missile]] defenses; seventy-seven [[armored personnel carrier]]s and sixty-seven "look-alikes." ("Look-alikes" is a [[Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty]] term denoting modifications of armored personnel carriers for specialised missions such as anti-tank missile carriage, reconnaissance, or engineer duties). This data appears garbled; in the 1995/96 edition of the [[IISS]] ''Military Balance'', armored infantry fighting vehicles were listed as 54 [[BMD-1|BMD]]s (Boyevaya Mashina Desanta, Airborne Combat Vehicle), there were sundry [[armored personnel carrier]]s, and 67 "look-alikes".<ref>IISS Military Balance 1995/96, p.91</ref>

Artillery included eighteen 122&nbsp;mm and fifty-three 152&nbsp;mm towed [[artillery]] units; nine 120&nbsp;mm combined guns/[[mortar (weapon)|mortar]]s; seventy [[AT-4 Spigot]], nineteen [[AT-5 Spandrel]], and twenty-seven [[AT-6 Spiral]] [[anti-tank]] guided weapons; one hundred thirty-eight 73&nbsp;mm [[SPG-9]] recoilless launcher, forty-five [[MT-12]] 100&nbsp;mm anti-tank guns; and thirty [[ZU-23]] 23&nbsp;mm and twelve [[57 mm AZP S-60|S-60]] 57&nbsp;mm air defense guns. Moldova has received some arms from former Soviet stocks maintained on the territory of the republic as well as undetermined quantities of arms from [[Romania]], particularly at the height of the fighting with Transnistria.

By 2006–7, the [[Moldovan Ground Forces]] had been reduced to a strength of 5,710, including three motor rifle brigades, one artillery brigade, and independent Special forces and engineer battalions, plus an independent guard unit. Equipment and weaponry included 44 [[BMD-1]] AIFVs, and 266 APCs, including 91 TAB-71s, as well as 227 artillery pieces.<ref name="IISS, 2007, p.170">Routledge/IISS, [[IISS]] Military Balance 2007, p.170</ref>

In 2022, during the Russian war in Ukraine, various Western countries pledged to support Moldova's territorial integrity and provide energy and military aid.<ref>{{Cite news |title=In Visit To Moldova, German Defense Chief Promises Further Military, Energy Aid |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/moldova-germany-visit-lambrecht-/32060898.html |access-date=2022-10-23 |website=RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty |language=en}}</ref> During a visit to Chișinau, German Defense Minister [[Christine Lambrecht]] said that Germany is prepared to offer purchases of drones and military training to Moldova. Later that month, Moldovan Defense Minister [[Anatolie Nosatîi|Anatolie Nosatii]] expressed that 90 percent of Moldova's military equipment dates back to the Soviet era and is in need of urgent replacement. He also mentioned that the armed forces face equipment shortages due to insufficient funding.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Defense Minister Says 90 Percent Of Moldova's Military Equipment Is Outdated |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/moldova-military-defense-outdated-underfunded/32095231.html |access-date=2022-10-23 |website=RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty |language=en}}</ref>[[File:Moldovan MiG-29B trainer on C-17 Globemaster III.jpg|thumb|upright|left|A Moldovan MiG-29UB trainer on an American C-17 Globemaster III in 1997.]]

====Air Force Command====
[[File:25 річниці незалежності Молдови 08.jpg|thumb|Air Force personnel in 2016.]]
[[File:Moldovan MiG-29B trainer.jpg|thumb|upright|left|A Moldovan MiG-29UB trainer in 1997.]]
In 1994 the [[Moldovan Air Force]] consisted of 1,300 men organized into one fighter regiment, one helicopter squadron, and one missile brigade.<ref name=LOCM /> Armaments used by the air force included thirty-one [[MiG-29 Fulcrum]] aircraft, eight [[Mil Mi-8|Mi-8]] Hip helicopters, five transport aircraft (including an [[Antonov An-72]] Coaler), and twenty-five [[SA-3 Goa]]/[[SA-5 Gammon]] [[surface-to-air missile]]s.

The [[86th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment]] had been located at [[Mărculești]] since October 1951, and had been reequipped with MiG-29s in 1988.<ref>Michael Holm, [http://www.ww2.dk/new/air%20force/regiment/iap/86gviap.htm 86th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120401125443/http://www.ww2.dk/new/air%20force/regiment/iap/86gviap.htm |date=2012-04-01 }}, accessed September 2011</ref> It had been part of the 119th Fighter Aviation Division, which had been resubordinated to the Soviet [[Black Sea Fleet]] since December 1989.

The [[United States]] purchased twenty-one of the MiG-29s in October 1997 to prevent their sale on the world market and for research purposes. All the spare parts for those aircraft were also purchased, as were the accompanying 500 air-to-air missiles.
<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.armscontrol.org/act/1997_10/moldoct.asp |title=Arms Control Association: Arms Control Today: U.S. Buys Moldovan Aircraft to Prevent Acquisition by Iran |access-date=2011-09-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080110022618/http://www.armscontrol.org/act/1997_10/moldoct.asp |archive-date=2008-01-10 |url-status=dead }}</ref> All the aircraft were transported from Moldova to the National Air Intelligence Center (NAIC) at [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] near [[Dayton, Ohio]], in [[Boeing C-17 Globemaster III]] transport planes over a period of two weeks.<ref>DefenseLink News Transcript, [http://www.defenselink.mil/Transcripts/Transcript.aspx?TranscriptID=1197 DoD News Briefing: Cooperative Threat Reduction Initiative] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061002092955/http://www.defenselink.mil/Transcripts/Transcript.aspx?TranscriptID=1197 |date=2006-10-02 }}</ref>

{{As of|2006}} all the MiG-29 fighters had either been sold or scrapped, and the [[Moldovan Air Force]] had only 2 An-2 Colts, 1 An-26 Curl, 2 An-72 Coalers, 8 Mi-8 Hips, and 12 SA-3 'Goa' SAMs in service, manned by 1,040 personnel.<ref name="IISS, 2007, p.170"/>

===Carabinieri===
The [[Trupele de Carabinieri]] is the [[gendarmerie]]-type force of the military, based on the [[Italian Carabinieri]]. The Moldovan Carabinieri is designed to ensure, together with the [[General Police Inspectorate]] or independently, public order and the protection of rights and freedoms of citizens.

=== Other forces ===

====Border Police====
{{Main|Moldovan Border Police}}
The [[Moldovan Border Police]] was founded on 3 September 1991, being entrusted to the Ministry of National Security under the subordination of the subunit of the former [[Soviet Border Troops]] deployed on Moldovan territory. On 11 January 1992, Colonel in June 1992, the Border Troops became an official separate branch of the armed forces, In December 1999, it was reorganized into the Department of the Border Guard Troops of Moldova and was withdrawn from the Ministry of National Security a month and a half later. On 1 July 2012, Prime Minister [[Vlad Filat]] ordered its shift from the armed forces to the internal affairs ministry.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.border.gov.md/index.php/ro/politia-de-frontiera/istoria| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140128064934/http://border.gov.md/index.php/ro/politia-de-frontiera/istoria| archive-date = 2014-01-28| title = Politia de Frontiera - Istoria}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://lex.justice.md/index.php?action=view&view=doc&lang=1&id=306988 |title=Archived copy |access-date=2020-05-01 |archive-date=2020-08-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808051258/http://lex.justice.md/index.php?action=view&view=doc&lang=1&id=306988 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

====Danube Force====
The Danube Forces of Moldova is a small militarized river flotilla. It is based in the port of [[Giurgiulesti]]. They have at their disposal several unarmed and auxiliary boats of various types.

== Equipment ==
{{main|List of equipment of the Moldovan Armed Forces}}
As part of [[NATO]]'s Defence and Related Security Capacity Building Initiative since 2014, the Moldovan Armed Forces are receiving modest amounts of equipment from the alliance.<ref name="balance2022">{{cite book |author=[[International Institute for Strategic Studies]] |title=The military balance 2022 |date=February 2022 |location=[[Abingdon-on-Thames|Abingdon, Oxon]] |isbn=9781032279008 |page=192 |publisher=[[Routledge]] }}</ref> The large part of Moldova's military equipment, however, is of [[USSR|Soviet]] origin and in need of replacement.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/moldova-military-defense-outdated-underfunded/32095231.html|title=Defense Minister Says 90 Percent Of Moldova's Military Equipment Is Outdated|work=[[Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty]]|date=21 October 2022}}</ref> The country has no defence-industrial capabilities beyond the basic maintenance of front-line equipment.<ref name="balance2022"/>

With the [[Russian invasion of Ukraine]], the [[European Union]] pledged to increase its military aid. As of June 2023, more than €87 million were provided in support for the modernisation of the defence sector.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://euneighbourseast.eu/news/latest-news/eu-hands-over-first-batch-of-modern-equipment-to-moldovan-armed-forces/|title=EU hands over first batch of modern equipment to Moldovan armed forces|date=1 June 2023|website=euneighbourseast.eu}}</ref>

==Professional holidays==
On 3 September, the National Army marks its professional holiday, ''Ziua Armatei Naționale'' (Day of the National Army). The [[President of Moldova]] as well as the [[Prime Minister of Moldova]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://gov.md/ro/tags/armata-nationala|title=Armata Naţională &#124; GUVERNUL REPUBLICII MOLDOVA|access-date=2020-04-20|archive-date=2022-05-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220501225529/https://gov.md/ro/tags/armata-nationala|url-status=live}}</ref> usually present congratulations to all active servicemen. On September 2, the Ministry of Defense organizes large demonstrations on the occasion of holiday.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timpul.md/articol/ziua-armatei-nationale-14969.html|title=Ziua Armatei Naţionale|date=3 September 2010 |access-date=2020-04-20|archive-date=2020-12-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201230174747/https://www.timpul.md/articol/ziua-armatei-nationale-14969.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Military and civilian staff lay flowers at the [[Stephen the Great Monument]] and the [[Eternity Memorial Complex, Chișinău|Eternity Memorial Complex]]. There is also a ceremony of the decoration of state and National Army distinctions, as well as honor diplomas to the best military and civilian employees. Festive activities are also organized in [[Bălți|Balti]], [[Cahul]], [[Edineţ]] and [[Ungheni]], in common with the local public administrations.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.army.md/?lng=2&action=show&cat=122&obj=5908| title = Ministerul Apărării al Republicii Moldova| access-date = 2020-04-20| archive-date = 2021-06-28| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210628041015/https://www.army.md/?lng=2&action=show&cat=122&obj=5908| url-status = live}}</ref> In 2018, the National Army Day [[silver jubilee]] celebrations were held at the base of the [[1st Motorized Infantry Brigade "Moldova"]] in [[Bălți]].<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://esp.md/sobytiya/2016/09/03/v-belcah-prazdnuyut-25-letie-nacionalnoy-armii-pryamaya-translyaciya|title = В Бельцах празднуют 25-летие национальной армии. Прямая трансляция|date = 3 September 2016|access-date = 20 April 2020|archive-date = 1 February 2019|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190201133659/http://esp.md/sobytiya/2016/09/03/v-belcah-prazdnuyut-25-letie-nacionalnoy-armii-pryamaya-translyaciya|url-status = live}}</ref>

On 2 March, the armed forces celebrates its Remembrance Day, which honours the memory of the [[Transnistria War]]. Remembrance Day events are usually organized throughout the country from 1–4 March. Flowers are usually laid at the [[Stephen the Great Monument]]. The participants have also organized the Memory March, walking from [[Great National Assembly Square, Chișinău|Great National Assembly Square]] to the Maica Indurerata (Grieving Mother) [[Eternity Memorial Complex, Chișinău|Monument at Eternitate Memorial]].<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.army.md/?lng=3&action=show&cat=122&obj=5569| title = Ministry of Defense of Republic of Moldova| access-date = 2020-05-01| archive-date = 2020-12-30| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201230174800/https://www.army.md/?lng=3&action=show&cat=122&obj=5569| url-status = live}}</ref>

==Military awards==
[[File:Ветеран Вооруженных сил.jpg|thumb|The veteran's medal]]
*Medal "10 years of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Moldova"<ref>[http://soviet-medals-orders.com/moldovan/thumb/mol20d_2111_t.shtml Medal of 10th Anniversary of Moldovan Army] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200211024659/http://soviet-medals-orders.com/moldovan/thumb/mol20d_2111_t.shtml |date=2020-02-11 }} {{in lang|en}}</ref>
*Veteran of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Moldova
*Medal "For service to the Motherland"<ref>[http://soviet-medals-orders.com/moldovan/thumb/mol19d_2111_t.shtml Medal of national army service to the motherland 3rd degree] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224020112/http://soviet-medals-orders.com/moldovan/thumb/mol19d_2111_t.shtml |date=2020-02-24 }} {{in lang|en}}</ref>
*Medal "For the strengthening of the military community"<ref>[http://www.moldova.md/md/newslst/1211/1/2544/ Moldova a găzduit exerciţiul multinaţional medical «Medceur 2007»] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304131820/http://www.moldova.md/md/newslst/1211/1/2544/|date=March 4, 2016}} Официальный сайт республики. {{in lang|ro}}</ref>
*Medal "For the Merit of the Carabinieri"
*Medal "For Impeccable Service in the Ministry of Internal Affairs"
*Medal "15th anniversary of the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan"
*Medal "10 years of the [[War in Transnistria]]" 
*Medal "10 years of the Border Troops"
*Medal "10 years of the Moldavian Army"
*Medal "10 years of the Carabinieri Troops"
*Commemorative Medal "75 years since the victory in the Second World War<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.army.md/?lng=3&action=show&cat=122&obj=6285| title = Ministry of Defense of Republic of Moldova| access-date = 2020-04-29| archive-date = 2022-01-16| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220116012638/https://army.md/?lng=3&action=show&cat=122&obj=6285| url-status = live}}</ref>
*Commemorative Medal "The 70th anniversary of the victory over fascism in the World War II"<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://president.md/eng/presa/presedintele-nicolae-timofti-a-inmnat-medalia-comemorativa-70-de-ani-de-la-victoria-asupra-fascismului-in-cel-de-al-doilea-razboi-mondial-unui-grup-de-veterani|title=President Nicolae Timofti hands commemorative medal "The 70th anniversary of the victory over fascism in the World War II" to veterans|access-date=2020-04-29|archive-date=2022-05-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220501225531/http://president.md/eng/presa/presedintele-nicolae-timofti-a-inmnat-medalia-comemorativa-70-de-ani-de-la-victoria-asupra-fascismului-in-cel-de-al-doilea-razboi-mondial-unui-grup-de-veterani|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Veterans’ organizations==
Moldovans who served in WWII, the [[Soviet–Afghan War]], as [[Liquidator (Chernobyl)|liquidators]] at the [[Chernobyl disaster]], and the Transnistrian War are eligible for a range of benefits such as discounts, medical services, and free use of public transportation. In 1990, the Republican Council of Soldiers-Internationalists was created, it was headed by the military commissar of the then Oktyabrsky District of Chișinău, Colonel Vitaly Zavgorodniy, a veteran of the war in Afghanistan.<ref name="Информация о союзе">{{Cite web|url=https://www.afgan.md/informatsiya-o-soyuze.html|title=Информация о союзе|access-date=2021-02-17|archive-date=2021-04-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420155406/https://afgan.md/informatsiya-o-soyuze.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The Union of Veterans of the War in Afghanistan of the Republic of Moldova is a veteran's group based in Moldova that advocates for the well-being of veterans of the Afghan War.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.afgan.md/novosti/v-kishineve-otmetili-32-letie-vyvoda-sovetskih-vojsk-iz-afganistana.html|title=В Кишиневе отметили 32-летие вывода советских войск из Афганистана|access-date=2021-02-17|archive-date=2021-04-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417215156/https://www.afgan.md/novosti/v-kishineve-otmetili-32-letie-vyvoda-sovetskih-vojsk-iz-afganistana.html|url-status=live}}</ref> On 15 May 2000, after the Government's initiative to abolish benefits for veterans of the war in Afghanistan, sympathizers went to [[Great National Assembly Square, Chișinău|Great National Assembly Square]]. In 2001, the [[Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova]], which came to power, radically changed the position of all veterans in the country.<ref name="Информация о союзе"/>

==Foreign forces==
Other military forces also remain within Moldova. In early 1994, the government of Transnistria had armed forces of about 5,000 which included the Dniester battalion of the Republic Guard and some 1,000 [[Cossacks]].<ref name=LOCM />

As of early 1994, the former Soviet [[14th Guards Army]] (about 9,200 troops) consisted of one army headquarters, the [[59th Guards Motor Rifle Division]], one tank battalion, one artillery regiment, and one [[anti-aircraft]] brigade. Their equipment and weaponry consisted of 120 [[main battle tank]]s, 180 [[armoured fighting vehicle]]s, and 130 artillery pieces/multiple rocket launchers/mortars. The remainder of the 14th Guards Army had been over the border in Ukraine and was absorbed by the Ukrainian armed forces.

Around 1994, peacekeepers in Transnistria consisted of six airborne battalions supplied by Russia, three infantry battalions supplied by Moldova, and three airborne battalions supplied by Transnistria.<ref name=LOCM />

Since 2007 the Russian force, now designated the [[Operational Group of Russian Forces in Moldova]], under the command of the [[Western Military District]] had withered away to a strength of some 1500 which included two motor rifle battalions, an independent security and support battalion, a helicopter detachment and several smaller, administrative detachments.

==See also==
* [[Moldova–NATO relations]]

==References==
{{commons category|Military of Moldova}}
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
*[http://www.army.md/ Ministry of Defence] of the [[Republic of Moldova]]
*[https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCa0Gsb2nAOq1-d7JxEvvWtw MDNationalArmy]

{{Moldova topics}}
{{Military of Moldova}}
{{Military of Europe}}
{{Military history of Europe}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Military Of Moldova}}
[[Category:Military of Moldova| ]]