Funerals of former Moldovan national security minister held today

Chisinau, 2 January /MOLDPRES/ - Intelligence and security officers have bid adieu to the former national security minister, division general Tudor Botnaru.   

Following the dirge, held at an Orthodox church in the centre of Chisinau, the burial procession went to the headquarters of the Intelligence and Security Service (SIS) – an institution where Botnaru started working back in 1963 and which afterwards he had the honour the lead. Here, the family of the departed and his relatives were joined by hundreds of people, among whom the leadership of the Service, active officers, reserve officers, veterans of the state security bodies, former SIS directors, friends and all those who valued Tudor Botnaru.       

At the end of the ceremony, which lasted for more than two hours, the corpse of the division general was carried to the central cemetery on the Armeneasca Street from Chisinau, where it was buried with military honours.  

Teodor Botnaru is a personality of reference in the national security sector. He will be kept in the memory of more generations of intelligence and security officers as a benchmark and a model of perseverance and dedication, a distinguished personality and a perfect professional.  

Division general Teodor Botnaru has been put down in the Book of Honour of Moldova’s Intelligence and Security Service. He was awarded the medals, ,,Pentru Merit” (For Merit) and ,,În slujba Patriei” (On Duty for the Motherland) of the third, second and first degrees for praiseworthy results and high professionalism proved in work. Botnaru was also awarded the order, ,,Credință Patriei” (Loyalty to the Motherland), first class and was holder of  an honorific title, Merited employee of Moldova’s Intelligence and Security Service. In 1990-1991, he held the office of president of the State Security Committee of Moldova’s Soviet Republic and in 1997-1998 he held the position of national security minister of Moldova.