He started his career in the Moldovan Ministry of Defence in early ‘90s, first as Editor-in-Chief of the Ministry’s weekly publication, then as Press Secretary of the Minister. In 1997, he became Head of External Relations of the Ministry of Defence to co-ordinate activities related to international military affairs and to develop the concept of military reform of the state. In 1999 he was appointed Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Moldovan Peacekeeping Forces to supervise personnel dislocated in the security zone of the Transnistrian region and to liaise with OSCE Mission.

From December 1999 to June 2013 Mr Cibotaru worked as Associate Professor at the Faculty of Journalism and Communication Sciences of the Moldovan State University, where he taught classes on basic theory of journalism, the media coverage of national security and journalism in extreme situations. Since 2006, he has been the Director of the European Institute for Political Studies, member of the Council of Europe’s Network of Schools of Political Studies.