Over 1,000 NATO Soldiers Hold Military Exercises in Albania

10 10 2007 Tirana _Over 1,000 soldiers from NATO and members of its Partnership for Peace, PfP, initiative started two military exercises on Tuesday on the outskirts of Tirana.

The aim of the exercises, codenamed “Cooperative Longbow 2007” and “Cooperative Lancer 2007”, is to strengthen collaboration between the North Atlantic Alliance and PfP countries in a bid to reinforce stability and peace in the event of a crisis.

The exercises, under the command of General Roland Kather, former chief of the NATO-led KFOR peacekeepers in Kosovo, will last until October 30.

A total of 22 countries are taking part in the manoeuvres. Six of these are NATO members, and the rest come from the PfP initiative which promotes cooperation between the Alliance and other nations.

General Kather described the exercises as important to the stability of the region and also a step forward in Albania’s integration with NATO.

“In their broadest sense, these exercises are linked to the stability of the Balkan region. They are also a way for us to oversee Albania’s bid to join NATO”, said Kather.

The Albanian Defence Minister, Fatmir Mediu, expressed appreciation for the trust placed in Albania by the Alliance.

“As the biggest exercise ever held in Albania by NATO, and one of the major exercises of the Alliance in 2007, this is important for Albania as a country aspiring to join the Alliance as a full member following NATO's summit [next year]”, Mediu said at the opening ceremony of the exercises.

Meanwhile in Iceland, NATO’s Parliamentary Assembly approved a resolution which endorses the possible issuing, at next year’s Bucharest summit, of invitations to Albania, Croatia and Macedonia to join the Alliance.

The resolution calls on these three candidates, known as the Adriatic Charter countries, to push through the necessary reforms, while urging NATO members to initiate discussions on the candidate countries’ accession.

In a speech to the NATO Assembly, Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha thanked member countries for their support, while promising that Albania would continue to be a factor of stability in the region.

“Our cooperation with NATO is reaching new heights, and for this I want to thank member-countries, but especially their taxpayers, for the support given to Albania.

“We will continue to support NATO operations in the region and elsewhere”, Berisha said.