The symbol is strong. The 27 paved the way for examining the applications of Georgia and Moldova to join the European Union. Both countries have asked for an accelerated procedure, fearing an expansion of the Russian offensive. Our special correspondent Marion Gauthier went to the border of Transnistria, this pro-Russian enclave in Moldova, not recognized by the international community. There, apprehension grows as the Russian army advances on neighboring Ukraine.
“It’s obvious that we feel in danger. If the neighbor’s house burns down, how can you feel good?” asks Siméon. His hands are shaking, but he is calm. Like all of his generation, he knows the sound of bullets and destruction. “I see myself there. I imagine what I would do, how I would proceed, where I would hide. Today, everything else has disappeared for me. There are only the refugees, and the war. “
“If a new war starts, we will not go anywhere”
Irina just arrived here yesterday. “I’m not a warrior,” she said. Her breath quickens as she lists the cities where the Russians are advancing, nervously kneading the arm of her son, mute, beside her. “I still hear the siren in my head. We hid under the sofa, under the beds… I spent 10 days without sleeping, I was sitting, doing nothing. I have hatred”, assures- she. She signs herself. The table looks down.
From right to left Simeon, Irina and Ivan.
“When I look towards Romania, I feel better. But when I look towards Transnistria, I get shivers. Today, the calm seems suspicious to me”, resumes Siméon. “Even if a new war starts, we will not go anywhere. We have buried villagers here, we have already seen all the atrocities possible”, outbids his wife. They will not be the next refugees. As for Irina and her son, they will leave if the sirens sound in Moldova.
“I raise this glass for peace”, launches Siméon before the few words of his wife. “I pray to God that all the women of the globe will cry only for joy, that they will have no more sleepless nights.”