Ceban was scared of a drone factory, but in fact, ceilings are produced there. Tofan: "Let's not have any illusions about the Russians' plans. And now we can sit and tremble and pretend that come on, let's just sit like that, with our heads down, maybe nothing would happen to us"

The Republic of Moldova must develop its own defense industry, including drone and interception equipment production capabilities, without giving up investments for fear of possible Russian attacks. The statement was made by Prime Minister Vasile Tofan, who rejected the warnings of Chisinau Mayor Ion Ceban regarding the risk that drone factories could turn the country into a military target. The Head of Government argues that the Republic of Moldova should not block its economic development due to threats from Russia.

During the podcast "La raport", moderated by Nicolae Chicu, the Prime Minister was asked about the statements of Mayor Ion Ceban, who had suggested that the production of drones in the Republic of Moldova could attract attacks on the country. The mayor had also referred to the existence of an alleged drone factory. Tofan rejected the information regarding the existence of such a factory in the location invoked by the mayor, specifying that a company that produced ceilings operated there, not military equipment.

"There is no factory at Arcom. I think the communication was very clear. There was a ceiling factory there," the prime minister said, adding: "So ceilings, not drones."

The Head of the Executive criticized the idea that the Republic of Moldova should abandon certain economic or industrial projects due to the risk of military action by Russia. According to him, such fears should not lead the authorities to block investments.

"I don't want us to get into a hysteria where we block any investment in Moldova. My opinion is that we must move forward and not have any illusions, that you know, we should also be afraid of our own shadow, that no matter what we do, that we bring potential Ukrainian gas, the Russians bomb, we build a factory, the Russians bomb. The problem is the Russians. And they, if they have any intentions to harm us, they will harm us. And they have done us a lot of harm over the years. Let's not have any illusions about the Russians' plan. And now we can sit and tremble and pretend that let's just sit like this, with our heads down, maybe nothing would have happened to us. Or we can invest, develop the economy and even develop economically and develop our defense industry, because we are nowhere at zero. Until then, I think we have decades to work on this," said Vasile Tofan.

At the same time, Tofan believes that the production of military and dual-use equipment could create jobs, generate exports and contribute to the country's security. In this context, the Prime Minister announced that the Government is working on a legislative framework to regulate the production of dual-use equipment, which is to be submitted for approval.

"There are a lot of investors. Indeed, it is an area in which we have a lot of interest. It is an area that needs to be well regulated. Here my vision is that being a neutral state does not necessarily mean being a powerless state," the prime minister said.

Tofan cited the examples of Austria and Switzerland, neutral states that developed defense industries, as well as Sweden and Finland, which had military production capabilities even before joining NATO.

"We have to produce here and if that is aligned with our interests and creates jobs and generates exports and above all allows us to protect ourselves better. It seems to me an absolutely normal thing to do. We are now in the phase of working on this law that must go to approval on dual-use products," explained Vasile Tofan.

The Prime Minister also stated that investors' interest in the production of defense equipment is supported by the existing engineering and industrial capacities in the Republic of Moldova.