The Albanian Armed Forces (Forcat e Armatosura të Republikës së Shqipërisë (FARSH)) are the military of Albania and were formed after the declaration of independence in 1912.
Its first Chief in Command was Lieutenant Colonel Ali Shefqet Shkupi By 1923, the Albanian Armed Forces fielded 10,691 active troops, including military police forces.
At that time, Albania did not have a navy. In 1927, the Albanian Armed Forces numbered approximately 8,000.
In 1927 alone, the Albanian military ordered 20,000 rifles, 40 mountain guns, 120 machine guns, and other supplies from Italy. ===Royal Albanian Army=== The Royal Albanian Army () was the army of King Zogu from 1928 until 1939.
Initially the communist purge concentrated on military personnel who had graduated from the Western Military Academies (mainly from Italy 1927–1939), and was extended later to the officers graduated from the Soviet Union (after Albania abandoned the Warsaw Pact in 1968).
In 1927 alone, the Albanian military ordered 20,000 rifles, 40 mountain guns, 120 machine guns, and other supplies from Italy. ===Royal Albanian Army=== The Royal Albanian Army () was the army of King Zogu from 1928 until 1939.
In 1927 alone, the Albanian military ordered 20,000 rifles, 40 mountain guns, 120 machine guns, and other supplies from Italy. ===Royal Albanian Army=== The Royal Albanian Army () was the army of King Zogu from 1928 until 1939.
On 7 April 1939, Italian troops invaded the country, and captured it in six days after fierce resistance by the overwhelmed Albanian army. ===Cold War=== After the Second World War, Albania became a Soviet-aligned country.
Initially the communist purge concentrated on military personnel who had graduated from the Western Military Academies (mainly from Italy 1927–1939), and was extended later to the officers graduated from the Soviet Union (after Albania abandoned the Warsaw Pact in 1968).
In the event, the armed forces stood by as the regime of which they had been a part disintegrated. During the 1980s, Albania had reduced the number of infantry brigades from eight to four.
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.
As the communist regime collapsed in Albania during 1990, there was a real fear that the armed forces might intervene to halt the collapse of communism by force.
In 1991 the rank system was reestablished under President Ramiz Alia. During all these years, Sigurimi which was the Albanian secret service during the period and was formed upon the KGB structure, was responsible for the execution, imprisonment, and deportation of more than 600 officers from the Armed Forces, by completely neutralising the Armed Forces ability to start a coup d'état.
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.
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.
Military spending has generally been lower than 1.5% since 1996 only to peak in 2009 at 2% and fall again to 1.5%. There was an incident in 2002 in Albania where it was discovered, in a cluster of mountain bunkers, 16 tons of primitive, undocumented chemical weapon agents that Albania had forgotten about. In December 2006, the Armed Forces adopted a new structure based on the Joint warfare concept.
It hosts an international fair on security and defense called the Albanian Military Exhibition (ALMEX) where different security industries can present their products and services for the regional market. ===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.
Military spending has generally been lower than 1.5% since 1996 only to peak in 2009 at 2% and fall again to 1.5%. There was an incident in 2002 in Albania where it was discovered, in a cluster of mountain bunkers, 16 tons of primitive, undocumented chemical weapon agents that Albania had forgotten about. In December 2006, the Armed Forces adopted a new structure based on the Joint warfare concept.
Military spending has generally been lower than 1.5% since 1996 only to peak in 2009 at 2% and fall again to 1.5%. There was an incident in 2002 in Albania where it was discovered, in a cluster of mountain bunkers, 16 tons of primitive, undocumented chemical weapon agents that Albania had forgotten about. In December 2006, the Armed Forces adopted a new structure based on the Joint warfare concept.
However this new structure lasted a little more than 3 years and on April 2010 returned to its classic and current form. 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 2008 Tirana explosions). The Albanian Land Force or Albanian Army consists of the Rapid Reaction Brigade, a Commando Regiment, and the Area Support Brigade.
Since February 2008, Albania participates officially in NATO's Operation Active Endeavor in the Mediterranean.
Military spending has generally been lower than 1.5% since 1996 only to peak in 2009 at 2% and fall again to 1.5%. There was an incident in 2002 in Albania where it was discovered, in a cluster of mountain bunkers, 16 tons of primitive, undocumented chemical weapon agents that Albania had forgotten about. In December 2006, the Armed Forces adopted a new structure based on the Joint warfare concept.
Albania became a full member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization on 1 April 2009.
However this new structure lasted a little more than 3 years and on April 2010 returned to its classic and current form. 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 2008 Tirana explosions). The Albanian Land Force or Albanian Army consists of the Rapid Reaction Brigade, a Commando Regiment, and the Area Support Brigade.
It hosts an international fair on security and defense called the Albanian Military Exhibition (ALMEX) where different security industries can present their products and services for the regional market. ===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.
All text is taken from Wikipedia. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License .
Page generated on 2021-08-05