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Known to the British and US spies as “Object 1180” these two structures were built in 1985 – at the height of the Cold War. As the threat of a nuclear strike from either side seemed more than likely, high-ranking officers needed somewhere to orchestrate their retaliation and prepare for a second strike. As a result, the cylinders were built with thick walls to withstand a direct nuclear hit and an entire city was concealed below with shops, hospitals and a vast amount of supplies to provide the generals with everything they needed.

They were only discovered when spy planes and satellites noticed increased activity heading towards the forests of Moldova and were soon abandoned following the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. However, YouTube star Benjamin Rich, the man behind popular exploration channel “Bald and Bankrupt” treated fans to a history lesson when he visited earlier this month. He explained: “In 1985, western satellites picked up some strange activity in the rural countryside of what was then the Moldavia Soviet Socialist Republic. “They noticed after analysing the photos that two huge circular constructions were being built below ground.

Secret underground bunkers were discovered in Moldova

There were two bunkers uncovered

They noticed after analysing the photos that two huge circular constructions were being built below ground Benjamin Rich

“They didn’t know what it was at the time and they named them Object 1180. “It was only years later, with the fall of the Soviet Union, that they discovered that it was an underground nuclear bunker.” Mr Rich, who treats his 800,000 subscribers to visits all over the former Soviet Union, explained why leaders in Moscow thought the construction was necessary. He added: “The Eighties were quite a scary time for people in England and in the Soviet Union. “It seemed at one point there was a real possibility of a nuclear war between the Soviet Union and the West.

“So the Soviet Union built about four of these giant nuclear bunkers dotted around the former nation for the high command to hide in and command the forces should, what seemed like the inevitable, happen. “They started construction in 1985, but as the Soviet Empire came to an end, there was no need for [them] anymore. “The West and East were friends so these monoliths were just left as reminders of how close we came to a war between our nations. " Finally, taking a look inside the dark abandoned remains, Mr Rich then revealed how things would have looked more than 30 years ago. He continued: “These things were designed for the bigwigs, the apparatchiks, the nomenclature of the Soviet Communist Party in the military High Command.

The channel is run by explorer Benjamin Rich

It has been abandoned since 1991

“This is where they would come and hide out and command the forces, make retaliatory strikes from, this is where they would be. “There would have been stores and food and medicines, there would have been hospitals here, everything that the High Command would need to survive a nuclear war. “You can see from the size of the walls, the thickness – I think this thing could have taken a nuclear strike direct on its roof. “It’s obviously built below ground because in those days satellites were picking up any strange activity and it’s in the middle of nowhere in Moldova, so even the local people didn’t know what was going on.”