Ammunition Stockpile Management of the Moldovan National Army, for the attention of international experts

CHISINAU, October 15, 2020 — Representatives of the Ammunition Management Advisory Team (AMAT) paid a visit to the National Army on October 12-15, in order to assess the real situation and identify solutions for efficient implementation of The National Army Action Plan in the field of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW), Conventional Ammunition (CA) and Physical Security and Stock Management (PSSM) for the years 2020-2024.

In this context, the AMAT experts, including the representative of the Golden West Humanitarian Foundation (GWHF), which provides significant support, in partnership with the United States European Command (US EUCOM) in implementation of the Moldovan PSSM Plan of Action, had a meeting with the Chief of the National Army General Staff — Commander of the National Army, Brigadier General Igor GORGAN, during which they discussed the situation at the ammunition storage aria in the National Army and the prospects for improving their storage management.

The dialogue also focused on the actions taken by the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Moldova in the field of PSSM during 2010-2020, as well as the benefits of received multinational assistance in the context of the implementation of the projects, aimed to mitigate the risks of uncontrolled explosion at ammunition storage sites.

At the same time, the agenda of AMAT representatives included visits to the Military Storage Base for weapons, ammunitions and military equipment from Floresti city and 3rd Motorized Infantry Brigade “Dacia” from Cahul city, were was presented the technics and real available conditions for storing the ammunitions as well as was organized a visit at the Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment in Danceni, where is the new aria proposed and planned for construction of one main ASA in according with international and national standards. In additional, the AMAT and GWHF experts were invited to be present during disposals action of the dangerous ammunition detected during the implementation of the inventory and inspection project.

During the visit, the head of AMAT, Samuel PAUNILA, appreciated the progress registered by the National Army in explosive risk mitigations token actions at ammunition depots, but also the readiness of the institution to modernize its surveillance capabilities of storage places and transport infrastructure for armaments and ammunition in accordance with international best practices.

The expert added that AMAT is open to support the National Army in strengthening security and safety at ASAs and for continuity implementation of the National Action Plan in the field of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW), Conventional Ammunition (CA) and Physical Security and Stock Management (PSSM ) for the years 2020-2024.

In January 2019, the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD) and The United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) launched a technical assistance mechanism entitled Ammunition Management Advisory Team (AMAT) to support States in ammunition management in accordance with the International Ammunition Technical Guidelines (IATG).