Newsletters
Albania's parliament on Monday approved a $302 million loan from the United States to upgrade the country's military, making it the latest Balkan nation to increase defense spending.
The agreement was approved with 74 votes from the ruling Socialist majority in the 140-seat parliament, despite a boycott by opposition lawmakers.
The loan will finance the purchase of military equipment meeting North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) standards.
The funds are expected to be disbursed gradually in line with the operational needs of the Defense Ministry.
The final release of the funds will require U.S. approval once projects are selected.
The government described the loan as a "historic agreement."
"The loan provides for investments in defense, particularly as part of Albania's commitment to NATO," Taulant Balla, leader of the ruling Socialist Party's parliamentary group, told lawmakers.
Balla said Albania will have four years to choose projects to fund and must repay the loan within 12 years, with the possibility of a one-year deferral.
He said the funding would be dedicated exclusively to modernizing the military, including military equipment "in line with NATO's highest standards," but provided no further details.
Following the vote, Balla said the first deliveries of military equipment were expected to begin in September.
He said the accelerated parliamentary procedure had been necessary to avoid jeopardizing deadlines set by U.S. partners for the first phase of funding.
Lawmakers considered and voted on the agreement during a closed-door session.
The ruling majority said the accelerated procedure was necessary because the accompanying documents contained classified information.
Opposition Democratic Party lawmakers boycotted the session, calling the procedure unconstitutional.
However, they said they supported strengthening Albania's armed forces through the agreement in principle.
"We support the agreement, but we cannot accept that the constitution be violated, especially since we only received the proposal from the Socialist Party this morning," Democratic Party lawmaker Belind Kellici told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Democratic Party parliamentary leader Gazment Bardhi also criticized the lack of transparency, saying opposition lawmakers had not been given access to the full agreement before the vote.
He nevertheless described the investment as necessary, despite his party's objections to the parliamentary procedure.
The vote came weeks after Albania, a NATO member, announced an increase in its defense budget to 69.2 billion lek, or $840 million, in 2026, nearly triple its military spending six years earlier.
As a member of the alliance, Albania has publicly committed to NATO's new target for members to spend 5% of gross domestic product (GDP) on defense and security by 2035.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
1 min read
1 min read
