Albanian Armed Forces
Albanian Armed Forces | |
---|---|
Forcat e Armatosura Shqiptare | |
Major General Arben Kingji[2] | |
Personnel | |
Military age | 18 |
Conscription | Repealed |
Available for military service | 1,519,794 age 18-49, age 15–49 |
Fit for military service | 1,270,274 age 18-49, age 15–49 |
Reaching military age annually | 62,032 |
Active personnel | 6,600[3] (ranked 90 of 145) |
Deployed personnel | Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Chad Ivory Coast Kosovo Liberia Latvia Mali formerly: Georgia Afghanistan Iraq |
Expenditures | |
Budget | 48.3 billion Lek ($514 million) (2024)[4] |
Percent of GDP | 2% (2024)[4] |
Industry | |
Domestic suppliers | Mechanical Combine in Poliçan Mechanical Plant in Gramsh Explosive Materials Plant in Mjekës[5] MEICO[6] |
Foreign suppliers | Austria Belgium France Germany Italy Romania Turkey United States formerly: China Soviet Union |
Related articles | |
History | Royal Albanian Army (1928–1939) Albanian People's Army (1945–1991) |
Ranks | Military ranks of Albania |
The Albanian Armed Forces (
The
Missions and duties
According to the
History
On 4 December 1912, the Albanian
In 1927, the Albanian Armed Forces numbered approximately 8,000. These troops were organised into three groups, based in Tirana, Shkodër to the north and Berat to the south. Each group was organised into three battalions of 500. A guards battalion of 350 was organized in Tirana. Four frontier battalions of mountaineers were held on reserve, as well as tanks and armoured cars. Additionally, a cadet school, a machine-gun school, and a bombing school were housed in the capital. Italian involvement in the Albanian Armed Forces was significant, with an Italian Colonel attached to each of the three main troop groups and an Italian officer attached to each battalion and battery and to each medical, veterinary, and transportation unit. In 1927 alone, the Albanian military ordered 20,000 rifles, 40 mountain guns, 120 machine guns, and other supplies from Italy.[11]
Royal Albanian Army
The
Cold War
After the
Like all other branches of the state, the military was subjugated to Communist Party control. All high-ranking military officers and most of the lower and middle ranks were members of the Communist Party—and had loyalties to it. The system was re-enforced by the establishment of Party cells within the military and extensive communist political education alongside soldiers' military training, by the political commissars. To further increase its political control, the Albanian Communist Party enlarged the conscription system, thus enlisting in the Armed Forces personnel dedicated to the military career from the Albanian rural areas.
The State and Party went even further, beginning on 1 May 1966,
During all these years,
During the 1980s, Albania had reduced the number of infantry brigades from eight to four. It had shifted to fully manned units from its prior reliance on the mobilisation of reserve soldiers to flesh out a larger number of units manned at a lower level. Each brigade had three infantry battalions and one lightly equipped artillery battalion. Armoured forces consisted of one tank brigade. Artillery forces were increased from one to three regiments during the 1980s, and six battalions of coastal artillery were maintained at strategic points along the Adriatic Sea littoral.
Post 1991
In 1992, the Library of Congress estimated that the ground forces had about 35,000 men, or about three-quarters of all armed forces personnel.[14] Because the strength of the ground forces was sufficient to man only about two divisions, brigades of approximately 3,000 soldiers became the largest army formation. In 1991 four infantry brigades constituted the bulk of combat units in the ground forces.[15]
During the civilian riots in 1997, the political attempts by the government to use the Armed Forces to crush the rebellion were soon demonstrated to be a failure, following a total disintegration of the Armed Forces and the looting of the military facilities by the civilian population.[16]
Albania sheltered many thousands of Kosovar refugees during the 1999 conflict, and allowed NATO to provide logistical assistance for
There was an incident in 2002 in Albania where it was discovered, in a cluster of mountain bunkers, 16 tons[20] of primitive, undocumented chemical weapon agents that Albania had forgotten about.[21]
In December 2006, the Armed Forces adopted a new structure based on the
In March 2008 the problem of massive amounts of excess ammunition stockpiled in Albania became known to the public through the tragic consequences of the explosion of an ammunition depot (the
The Albanian Land Force or Albanian Army consists of the
The Albanian Navy performs mainly Coast Guard duties, and recently the Albanian parliament has approved some amendments to the articles of the actual Law on the Coast Guard in Albania, in order to improve the necessary legal framework due to efforts at European Union-NATO integration. Since February 2008, Albania participates officially in NATO's
Modernisation
After several major re-equipment programs, in 2001 the Albanian Armed Forces launched a 10-year reform program to become technologically advanced and fully professional by 2011. The new armed forces consists of about 14,500 troops including 2,000 civilians, trained to
In 2004 U.S. President
On 3 April 2006, the final contract for the delivery of 12 Bölkow-Blom MBB
Albania has recently acquired four
On 16 July 2014, The Albanian Defence Minister declared that within 2014 the Albanian Motorised Infantry Battalion will be fully combat ready and also equipped with modern NATO equipment. This will be the first unit in the Albanian Armed Forces to not have the AK 47 in its inventory. Instead the M4 carbine will act as its standard battle rifle.[31]
In August 2018, the
The process of modernization of the Albanian Armed Forces is based on the short-term, middle-term and long-term objectives and priorities of their restructuring and development aiming at achieving the increase of the operational capacities. The modernization programme started before the country's
Ground Forces
The modernization of the Land Forces began around 2006, starting with Special Forces such as the BFS (then known as the Batalioni i Operacioneve Speciale, BOS) and the Commandos. Seeing their involvement in NATO peacekeeping operations in
In 2015 other weapons were introduced over all ground units. The
The following year the
In 2017 the Combat Support Battalion (Batalioni Mbështetjes së Luftimit, BML) was equipped with
In 2007, was signed a contracts with the
]Structure
Participation
- South-Eastern Europe Brigade – created in 1998 and consisting of Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, North Macedonia, Greece, Italy, Slovenia, Romania, Turkey and the United States.[46] NATO has already declared the force fully operational.
- EU Mission "ALTHEA" in EOD team of 1) Participation in the peacekeeping mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina so far has been, 1481 soldiers.[47]
- NATO/PfP led Mission ISAF in AfghanistanUnder Italian and Turkish Command (Completed).
- Coalition Forces led – Iraqi Freedom under American command (Completed. Albania withdrew all its troops from Iraqon 20 December 2008).
- EU Mission
- NATO Operation in the Mediterranean "Active Endeavour".[49]
- NATO-led KFOR mission in Kosovo.[50] Currently only 89 troops are contributing.[51] So far, 158 military personnel have been deployed[52]
- International Maritime Security Construct[53]
Country | Current Mission | Organization | No. of personnel |
---|---|---|---|
Afghanistan | ISAF
|
NATO | 2862014, 4132016, 6192017 |
Ivory Coast | UNOCI
|
United Nations | 10 |
Liberia | UNMIL
|
United Nations | |
Kosovo | KFOR | NATO | 89[54] |
Equipment
References
- ^ Barbullushi, Suad (19 June 2012). "Background of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Albania (Albanian)". aaf.mil.al (in Albanian). Archived from the original on 19 June 2012. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
- ^ "President's decree for the Chief of General Staff". www.president.al. President of Albania (Official website). Archived from the original on 30 August 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
- ^ "Defence Expenditure of NATO Countries (2014-2023)" (PDF).
- ^ a b https://ata.gov.al/2023/11/08/peleshi-buxheti-2024-permbush-angazhimin-e-nato-s-ne-janar-perurojme-bazen-ajrore-te-kucoves/?amp=1.
{{cite web}}
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(help)[permanent dead link] - ^ "Albanian Military Industry". Archived from the original on 20 March 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
- ^ "MEICO official website". Archived from the original on 18 May 2013.
- ^ "Article 168, Section 2". Constitution of Albania. 28 November 1998. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
- ^ "Article 169, Section 1". Constitution of Albania. 28 November 1998. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
- ^ "Former CHODs". Albanian Armed Forces. Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
- ^ Zimand, Savel (19 April 1925). "Armies of the Nations Still Huge and Costly". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
- ^ Swire, John (1971). Albania: The Rise of a Kingdom. New York: Arno Press. pp. 506–07.
- ISSN 0024-3019.
- ^ Miranda Vickers. The Albanians: A Modern History. New York: I.B. Tauris, 2000. p. 224.
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- ^ Warrick, Joby (10 January 2005). "Albania's Chemical Cache Raises Fears About Others". Washington Post. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
Altogether, the (Albanian) bunkers hold nearly 600 vessels containing about 16 tons of what is known in military jargon as "bulk agent."
- Science Insider. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
- ^ Kondi, Luan (25 April 2010). "Forcat e Armatosura, struktura e re pa Komandën e Bashkuar". Shqip. Archived from the original on 7 May 2013. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
- ^ "The Canadian Press: Albanian army ammunition depot explodes, killing 5 and injuring 215". Archived from the original on 19 March 2008.
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- ^ "ALMEX". Albanian Military Exhibition.
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- ^ "Armscontrol.org". Retrieved 23 October 2014.
- ^ Germany will supply Albania with 12 BO-105 Helicopters
- ^ "Zhvillohet analiza e 300 ditëve të para të punës së Ministrisë së Mbrojtjes". Archived from the original on 23 October 2014. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
- ^ NATO to revamp Albanian air base: PM, SpaceDaily, 5 August 2018
- ^ H&K in Albania (in Albanian). Pellumb Nili Youtube Channel. Archived from the original on 11 December 2021.
- ^ "Soldier Modernisation | Italian Digitization Steps (ITALY)". www.soldiermod.com. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
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- ^ "Hapa të tjerë drejt modernizmit" (PDF). Gazeta Ushtria. 6 November 2015. Archived (PDF) from the original on 9 October 2022.
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- ^ "Italy to Transfer Beretta AR70/90s to Albania -". The Firearm Blog. 16 October 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
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- ^ a b "Excess Defense Articles (EDA)" (.exe). Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA). 6 March 2017. Archived from the original on 7 September 2017. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
- ^ "US donates 37 MRAP vehicles to Albania". www.armyrecognition.com. 16 April 2019. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
- ^ "The new ship "Oriku"" (PDF). Revista Mbrojtja. Ministry of Defense. QKMBM. September 2011. pp. 3–7. Archived (PDF) from the original on 23 August 2017. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
- ^ "The first ship was built at Pasha Liman". www.mod.gov.al. Ministry of Defence. Archived from the original on 23 August 2017. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
- ^ ""Butrinti" ceremonial ship launching". www.mbrojtja.gov.al. Ministry of Defence. Archived from the original on 23 August 2017. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
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External links
- Official website (in Albanian and English)
- Official website (in Albanian and English)
- Albania Archived 20 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine at Uniform Insignia
- Profile at Global Firepower