Petro Koçi: The support of Albanian Government to shaping a clear vision of CIMIC is increased

Published: Tuesday, 28 May 2019 13:05

 

NATO’s Civil - Military Cooperation (CIMIC) Key Leaders Conference this year was held in Albania and was organized in the premises of the Ministry of Defense. Its purpose is to analyze how CIMIC supports the NATO strategy to combat the emerging threats.

During his speech, Deputy Defense Minister Petro Koçi said that Albania, as a NATO member, appreciates CIMIC as one of the main factors of the Defense Concept and the prevention of future NATO Conflicts: “For this reason, the Albanian Government has significantly increased legal support, guidelines, measures and cooperation between the central government, local government, civil actors and the Armed Forces to define roles and responsibilities with the aim of shaping a clear vision of Civil - Military Cooperation.

Albanian Government has given particular importance to its participation in regional initiatives and cooperation in coping with challenges such as the fight against terrorism, illegal immigration, civil emergencies, etc.

The Albanian Armed Forces have played an important role in consolidating the philosophy of CIMIC in the country by transmitting to the other actors the model and the example of successful participation in the prevention and resolution of emergencies, not only internally but also abroad.

Currently, a contingent of the Albanian Naval Force operates successfully in the Aegean Sea in the framework of a NATO joint operation to prevent migration flows. Only the last year the AAF participated in firefighting operations emergencies, floods, bridge constructions, new roads, etc.”, Koçi said.

Brigadier General Tonin Marku, as the Director of CIMIC in SHAPE, and Major General Pedersen, DCOS Partnership Directorate at SHAPE, spoke during this activity as well.

NATO’s 2019 CIMIC Key Leaders’ Conference, attended by almost 100 representatives from the National Civic-Military and Public Relations community, has started since 27th May and will last three days.