TIRANA, Dec 29 /ATA/ – Albania’s armed forces must be built on well-trained personnel and functional structures to meet NATO standards and the country’s security needs, Defense Minister Pirro Vengu said on Monday.
Speaking at the oath-taking ceremony of students at the Armed Forces Academy, attended by President Bajram Begaj, Vengu said the military Albania seeks to build depends primarily on human capital.
Addressing the new recruits, Defense Minister said they had moved from being individual names in formation to becoming part of a unified body, bound by shared responsibility and commitment.
“Today you are part of the living forces of this nation, part of a broader community that believes security, stability and the country’s future are safeguarded by your dedication,” he said, describing the armed forces as a body built on trust, discipline and responsibility.
Vengu praised the recruits for joining voluntarily at a time of heightened security challenges in Europe and the region, noting that several countries have reinstated compulsory military service.
Military strength is not measured solely by technology or equipment, Vengu said, but above all by human capital, including character, discipline and the ability to act under pressure.
He said Albania’s strategic “Defense 2030” programme rests on two pillars: human capital and critical infrastructure. Investments in the Armed Forces Academy, training centres, laboratories, firing ranges and modern training systems were a necessity, not a luxury, he added.
Vengu said the academy had become one of the country’s most serious higher education institutions, stressing that reforms succeed only through the people who implement them.
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