Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita told CNN that an invasion of her nation was “a hypothetical scenario for now.”
“But if the military actions move further into the southwestern part of Ukraine and towards Odessa, of course we are very concerned,” he said.
The Prime Minister of Moldova, Natalia Gavrilita, has pointed out the possibility of Russia invading her country. (AP)
Sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine, Moldova was part of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union for the past 200 years.
The former Soviet nation has tried to maintain its neutrality between Russia and the West, but has publicly criticized Vladimir Putin over the invasion.
“If a country can start a war of annexation without regard to international law, then, in that sense, no one is safe,” Gavrilita said.
“I think a lot of countries are concerned.”
The footprint of Soviet Russia remains in Moldova. (AP)
A thin strip of Moldova called Transnistria is an unrecognized breakaway state that has tried to join Russia.
Russia has a military base in Transnistria.
In April, a Russian general and Putin ally said Russia was looking to establish a land corridor through Ukraine to connect with Transnistria, which is on Moldova’s eastern border.
Moldavia first formed as its own political entity in the 1300s, but has found itself at the center of conflicts with Poland, the Ottomans and the Russian Empire.
After spending much of the 19th century as part of Romania, it was absorbed into the USSR in 1940 in an agreement between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union.
It became an independent nation in 1992.
Moldova has a population of about 2.5 million inhabitants and is the poorest country in Europe.
Ukrainian refugees are being helped to cross the border into Moldova. (AP)
Warship of Ukraine’s ally tracks Russian submarines