KUCOVA: Amid escalating tensions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Albania revealed a renovated NATO-backed airbase on Monday, emphasizing the alliance’s growing presence in southeast Europe.
As Russia fights in Ukraine, the facility acts as a vital military barrier in Europe and is the most recent representation of Albania’s westward push.
Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama emphasized during the opening ceremony that the base’s significance “extended beyond Albania’s borders.” Rama cautioned that the Western Balkans region “is not far from the threat… of the Russian Federation” and that the base was an additional layer of defense for that area.
Situated in an Albanian city originally called after Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, the location was once the home of several Soviet and Chinese-built aircraft that were abandoned on a defunct communist airbase for years to rust in the open.
The location in the center of the city, now known as Kucova, has been turned into a cutting-edge facility supported by NATO for the last two years.
Four fighter jets performed a flyover and landed on the new runway during the opening ceremony, which was witnessed by diplomats and NATO officials. From the Italian Aviano airstrip of NATO, the planes crossed the Adriatic to arrive.
At the base’s entrance, a number of MiG aircraft from the Soviet era were stationed to symbolize the nation’s communist past.
“Kucova air base’s opening shows that the Alliance is deeply involved in this important region, using a 360-degree strategy,” stated NATO.
Lieutenant General Juan Pablo Sanchez de Lara, as a representative. “We must be ready to defend ourselves with the only winning formula on the table: the union of our defense forces and capabilities,” stressed Niko Peleshi, Albania’s minister of defense.
