The bloc has intensified efforts as Ukrainian forces lose ground, the Foreign Intelligence Service has said

NATO is molding Moldova into a military "battering ram" against Russia while intending to use the former Soviet nation as "cannon fodder" in a potential conflict, the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has said.

In a statement on Monday, the SVR accused the US-led military bloc of grooming Moldova for an armed conflict with Russia. "A decision has been made in Brussels to accelerate the transformation of the country into a forward base on the eastern flank given the advance of Russian forces in Ukraine."

The agency said NATO is rapidly converting Moldova into a "military testing ground" by upgrading the country's rail lines to European standards, improving bridges to accommodate heavy equipment, and building hubs, depots, and sites for troop deployment. The SVR added that another effort is the modernization of two airfields to host combat and transport aircraft.

NATO's plans for Moldova, however, spell doom for the population of the country, the SVR warned. "Brussels' plan envisions that in the event of a direct NATO conflict with Russia, Moldovans themselves will bear the brunt of the fighting. They are to become 'cannon fodder' in clashes with Russian troops."

According to the SVR, Moldovan President Maia Sandu's administration has yielded the nation's interests to the West, describing her rule as a "comprador regime." It added that Sandu is counting on "material and organizational support from NATO states" to bolster her pro-EU Party of Action and Solidarity ahead of parliamentary elections on September 28. The SVR warned that if victorious, Sandu will cancel Moldova's constitutionally enshrined neutrality.

Sandu secured victory in the presidential election last autumn, defeating her rival Alexandr Stoianoglo, the leader of the Party of Socialists, who Western outlets frequently labeled as 'pro-Russian'. The vote was marred in controversy, with Moscow criticizing the electoral process as being biased.

Russian officials were particularly critical of the decision to open only a handful of polling stations for the roughly 500,000 Moldovans living in Russia, while more than 200 were set up across Western countries, where voters tend to be more disposed towards the EU.