TIRANA, June  1  /ATA/ The multinational exercise “Defender Europe ’23” wrapped up its activities in the territory of Albania.

In the ceremony held on this occasion, in the garrison of Zall-Herr, Minister of Defense Niko Peleshi assessed that this exercise, in addition to putting to the test the elements of deployability and interoperability in response to crises, in a wide range of operations as well as the capabilities and potential of the host countries, also sent a very powerful message across, that of unity.

“Such exercises clearly demonstrate the commitment of the US and NATO as guardians of order and security in the Euro-Atlantic area. “Defender” is a clear and concrete example of the fact that NATO and its allies are stronger together, contributing and investing in the buildup of collective defense capacities,” emphasized Peleshi.

Peleshi said that Albania proved that it offers an excellent experience in terms of hosting and conducting military exercises on such a scale, reconfirming the capabilities of the Armed Forces to be interoperable with the sister armies of the Alliance.

“As Minister of Defense, I express the full support of the government as well as my personal commitment that we will work tirelessly for the modernization of the Armed Forces in order for them to be equipped, trained and supported at all times, to render possible the fulfillment of the constitutional mission and obligations as part of NATO,” Peleshi said.

For more than a month, over 24,000 military troops from 26 NATO countries and its partners demonstrated their power in many countries at the same time, through strategic scenarios and the implementation of operational tasks on land, air and sea.

At the end of the activity, “Certificates of Appreciation” were handed out to 17 foreign soldiers, participants in the exercises that took place in our country within the framework of “Defender ’23”, as a sign of recognition and thank-you from the Minister of Defense and the Chief of the General Staff of AF, Brigadier General Arben Kingji.

/sm/