People are searched for by ads pasted on poles and sent by private messages via Telegram. This is stated in the investigation of RISE Moldova.

According to the RISE investigation, the alleged recruiters are Sergey Klimov and Alexei Storozhuk. They both serve in the Western Military District, founded by the Russian Ministry of Defense. According to the Ukrainian special services, the servicemen of this group are participating in the war in Ukraine.

“That is, in fact, recruiters from Transnistria are colleagues of the military aggressors of the regular Russian army that attacked Ukraine in February 2022,” the investigation says.

A RISE journalist called one of the recruiters and introduced himself as an unemployed native of Balti. He was explained that to get into the service, he needed a Russian military ID and a certificate of good conduct on the territory of the Russian Federation. The first contract is for three years. The recruiter answered evasively to questions about the prospect of being sent to war in Ukraine, calling them provocative.

In addition, journalists received a detailed leaflet from the Russian Defense Ministry about the prospects for service in Transnistria. The document promises servicemen a salary of 35,000 Russian rubles ($600), housing after five years of service, three meals a day and extra food, a large selection of clothing, free healthcare, transportation to work, retirement after 20 years, and career growth.

The campaign leaflets received are dated 2019. This means the recruitment has been going on for more than a year.

The Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration condemned attempts to recruit Moldovan residents into the Russian army.

“The recruitment of local residents into military structures illegally deployed in the Transnistrian region undermines the sovereignty, and territorial integrity and contradicts the neutrality status of the Republic of Moldova,” the ministry’s press service said.