Kosovo, Albania, and Croatia plan joint multinational or NATO exercises

Multinational or NATO exercises in various fields, including cybersecurity, search and rescue, will be held within the framework of the military alliance between Kosovo, Albania, and Croatia, with the plan for their implementation to be finalized in September. Regarding coordination for joint procurements among alliance members, the Croatian Ministry of Defense stated that the process has not yet begun, Koha reports.

The military alliance between Kosovo, Albania, and Croatia aims to increase interoperability among the parties in multinational or NATO exercises in different areas, the Croatian Ministry of Defense announced. Unlike Croatia and Albania, Kosovo is not a NATO member. As the Croatian ministry noted in a written response to Koha, the forms of participation will be determined after joint consultations with experts.

“One of the defined areas of cooperation is improving interoperability through education and joint exercises. The goal is for the signatories of the Agreement to be invited to participate in national, multinational, or NATO exercises in various fields (possibly in the cyber domain, search and rescue, etc.). More will be determined in the future after joint discussions among experts,” the Croatian Ministry stated.

The first official meeting at the strategic and operational level between representatives of Albania, Croatia, and Kosovo was held in Tirana in July. According to the Croatian government, the purpose of the meeting was to discuss and propose joint activities in various functional areas, as well as to draft an action plan for future cooperation.

“After the signing of the Joint Declaration, the signatory countries began drafting a document called the Action Plan, which further operationalizes the goals outlined in the Declaration, in line with specific areas of cooperation, as well as concrete joint activities at the level of the Ministries of Defense and Armed Forces,” the Croatian Ministry of Defense stated.

Officials from the Kosovo government also said that the concretization of military cooperation between Kosovo, Albania, and Croatia, along with an implementation plan, will take place in September. The final guidelines are planned to be submitted to the three ministries for approval in September.

Kosovo’s caretaker Defense Minister Ejup Maqedonci said that the cooperation also includes arms procurement. According to him, the goal is that instead of three separate orders from each country, there will be a single order, financed with national funds from each country.

However, the Croatian Ministry of Defense clarified that coordination of joint procurements among alliance members has not yet started.

On March 18, Kosovo, Albania, and Croatia signed a declaration in Tirana, committing to strengthen cooperation in defense and security. The three countries pledged to increase the interoperability of their armed forces through education, training, and joint exercises, to engage in combating hybrid threats, and to align their policies with Euro-Atlantic integration.

The declaration also confirmed the intent to strengthen trilateral cooperation in the field of defense and security to enhance safety and stability in Southeast Europe and the Adriatic-Ionian region.

The declaration signed in Tirana leaves the possibility for other countries to join, and it is known that Bulgaria has already been invited.