Troops and weapons “illegally” present in Transnistria need to be evacuated to Russia as part of a “peaceful resolution” of the conflict, Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean told reporters on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Ukrainian troops were spotted approaching the breakaway region and its vast stores of weapons and ammunition.

“demilitarization” of the region, so its residents could be “economically and socially reintegrated” into Moldova. 

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has claimed that Moscow is preparing to overthrow the government in Moldova. He told the German outlet Die Welt that Russia paratroopers might storm the country’s only airport in the capital, Chisinau, and that Ukraine was willing to “help” if this happens. 

Asked about this on Tuesday, Recean told state TV there were “several scenarios of destabilization” and that the airport attack is one of them, but that Moldova was “ready to face such a challenge.” Later in the day, a convoy of Ukrainian troops and armored vehicles was photographed moving towards the border with Transnistria. 

Meanwhile, Moldovan President Maia Sandu was in Poland, where she met with US President Joe Biden. In his speech in Warsaw, Biden praised the “freedom-loving people of Moldova” and pledged support for the country’s “sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

Lavrov said earlier this month that the US and its allies were trying to make Moldova into another anti-Russian bastion along the lines of Ukraine, suggesting Sandu came to power “through some very peculiar methods” and was willing to do anything to get annexed by Romania. The EU granted both Moldova and Ukraine candidate status last year, as a symbolic gesture against Moscow.