NATO trusts Albania and will organize the NATO Defence Ministers’ Summit in Tirana in June, thus showing appreciation for Albania’s role for stability in the region, Defence Minister Olta Xhaçka said. This will be the first time a Defence Ministers’ Summit will be held in the Western Balkans, as these meetings have been held in Belgium for more than 10 years.
NATO Ministers of Defence endorsed at the Atlantic Council meeting in Brussels the proposal by Albanian Defence Minister Olta Xhaçka to be held in Tirana in June.
“The Alliance’s decision to convene in Albania is not only the highest consideration for the security that our country promotes as a worthy ally, but also a strong NATO message for its attention to the Western Balkans and the strong role Albania plays as a factor of stability in the region”, the minister said at the end of the Ministerial Meeting held in Brussels on 12 and 13 February.
However, according to Minister Olta Xhaçka, “the important meeting that is expected to take place in June is a responsibility and we must respond properly to the biggest event since our NATO membership 11 years ago. This is a commitment that, in addition to the coordination between all the institutions, will also demonstrate our seriousness to be the center of defence and security in the world for 48 hours”.
At the Atlantic Council meeting in Brussels, Minister Xhaçka thanked the allied countries that have been close to the Albanian people since the first hours of November 26 and those who continue to assist in the most important phase of reconstruction. During the Brussels Ministerial Conference, Xhaçka met with US Secretary of Defence Mark Esper.
Defence is a top priority for the United States of America, while the US government and its taxpayers are the main supporters of the Albanian Armed Forces./abcnews.al
