The State Protection and Guard Service of Moldova (, abbreviated ''SPPS'') is a

Moldova Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. ...

n independent

government agency A government agency or state agency, sometimes an appointed commission, is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government (bureaucracy) that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, s ...

and institution which has the duty of protecting government officials, as well as foreign dignitaries, and their relatives. It specifically charged with the protection of

President of Moldova The president of the Republic of Moldova () is the head of state of Moldova. The current president is Maia Sandu, who assumed office on 24 December 2020. Duties and functions The president "represents the State" and is "…the guarantor of n ...

during his/her travels. It also provides guards for the headquarters and residences of government agencies. It is very similar to the

Protection and Guard Service Protection and Guard Service (, abbreviated SPP) is the Romanian institution designated to protect and defend dignitaries, as well as their family or close relatives. The institution operates independently, although it collaborates closely with t ...

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. The service's motto is ''Honor et Fides'' (Honor and Faith).

History

The initially entitled Presidential Guard Service was created by order of Moldovan President

Mircea Snegur Mircea Snegur (; 17 January 1940 – 13 September 2023) was a Moldovan agronomist and politician who served as the first President of Moldova from 1990 to 1997. Prior to that, he served as the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of ...

on 27 January 1992. It was organized as an independent sub-unit of the Ministry of National Security (now the Information and Security Service), being directly subordinated to the

. On 6 May 1994, the Presidential Guard Service was renamed the Security Service of the

before adopting its current name on 28 January 1998. One month later, on 26 February 1998, the service came under the direct control of government. It would serve as a government agency until June 2008 when it was subordinated again to the president. In 2016, the SPPS came under government jurisdiction again.

Missions

The SPPS takes part in activities related to identification, prevention and combating actions which might threaten life and security of state officials. As of 2018, the SPPS is the main agency which has the capability to detect, prevent and counteract illegal activity against the government.

Leadership

The SPPS Board is the management body of the SPPS, which approves concepts and adopts decisions on the most important issues of the service and determines the priority directions of subdivisions' activity.

SPPS Chiefs

* Colonel Valeriu Andronic (1994–1997) * Major General (1997–2001) * Colonel Vasile Dragomir (2001–2002) * Colonel Vladimir Priguza (2002–2003) * Colonel Alexandru Ursachi (2003–2007) * Major General Igor Bodorin (2007–present)

References

External links