On Wednesday 9th April, the Chair of the NATO Military Committee (CMC), Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, visited Albania and met with the highest political and military leadership. Admiral Cavo Dragone's visit followed the 16th anniversary of the country joining the Alliance. He also delivered a lecture to the Defence Security College in Tirana.
CMC met with the Chief of the General Staff of the Albanian Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Arben Kingji, where the discussions focused on Albania's valuable contribution to Alliance's shared security. CMC took the opportunity to praise Albania for "its steadfast contribution to NATO's multinational forces in Latvia and Bulgaria, to NATO's KFOR peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, and to NATO's mission in Iraq." CMC highlighted that Albania has continuously expanded its role within the Alliance, increased its contributions, and trained officers and NCOs capable of operating in multinational environments.
Afterwards, Admiral Cavo Dragone met with Minister of Defence Pirro Vengu. CMC welcomed Albania's efforts to invest more in defence and its continued support for Ukraine, including pledges of humanitarian and military aid.
During his visit, the CMC met with President Bajram Begaj and Prime Minister Edi Rama. The conversations revolved around Albania's commitment to invest more in defence, its engagement to promoting stability and cooperation across the Western Balkans; a region of strategic importance to NATO. Preparations for the upcoming NATO Summit in The Hague were also discussed.
Speaking at the Defence Security College in Tirana, Admiral Cavo Dragone also thanked Albania for its politico-military role in NATO: "The Alliance needs leaders capable of taking difficult, but bold decisions in challenging times" and "Albania is no stranger to this kind of leadership."
