Albania Hosts Adriatic Military Exercise

04/08/2005

The Adriatic Sea off the coast of Albania was the site of a recent joint military exercise involving US, Albanian and Macedonian forces. The exercise, Adriatic Engagement 2005, was meant to enhance capabilities and promote co-operation.

By Erlis Selimaj for Southeast European Times in Tirana -- 04/08/05

Albanian Special Forces “fast rope” from a US Navy helicopter on 18 July. The drill is one of many types of training being conducted as part of Adriatic Engagement 2005. [USEUCOM]

US, Albanian, and Macedonian forces jointly participated in the "Adriatic Engagement 2005" military exercise held from 11 July to 30 July. It was the most recent in a series of annual exercises meant to develop combat proficiencies and promote friendship, mutual understanding, and co-operation among NATO and regional allies.

Nearly 1,500 US Navy and Marine Corps personnel, three Albanian infantry platoons and helicopter support, and a Macedonian combat engineer platoon and Special Forces unit participated in field exercises, search-and-rescue scenarios, casualty evacuation rehearsals, and maritime interception operations.

The participating US forces included the amphibious assault ship USS Saipan (LHA 2), the rescue and salvage ship USS Grasp (ARS 51), Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit EIGHT (EODMU 8), Helicopter Support Squadron FOUR (HC 4), Marine Corps Security Force Company Europe, and Commander, Task Force SIX SEVEN (CTF 67).

"Joint exercises, such as the Adriatic Engagement 2005, promote security co-operation efforts that foster regional stability, advance multinational interoperability, and deter potential adversaries -- all invaluable contributions to the international fight against terrorism", said a spokesperson for the US Embassy in Tirana, which announced the event.

Albania, together with Macedonia and Croatia, are part of the Adriatic Charter, an initiative in the spirit of the 1998 US-Baltic Charter, proposed jointly by the presidents of Albania, Croatia, and Macedonia to US President George W. Bush at the November 2002 NATO summit in Prague. The three Balkan countries aspire to eventual NATO membership.

Bush welcomed the initiative as a strong contribution towards his vision of a Europe whole, free, and at peace. Colin Powell, the US secretary of state at the time, was among those who signed the charter in Tirana on 2 May, 2003.

Albania has also been a participant in global peacekeeping operations, including Afghanistan and Iraq. It is among the countries that sent troops to the combat phase of Operation Enduring Freedom. In recognition of its contributions to the war on terror, the United States recently granted Albania $8m within the framework of two military programmes, the US Coalition Solidarity Fund and Bush's Global Peacekeeping Operations Initiative.