Albanian parliament approves $302 million US defense loan | Today’s news
Albania’s parliament has approved a $302 million loan to finance military purchases as the NATO member increases defense spending and prepares to host the alliance’s next summit.
Lawmakers in Tirana resorted to a fast-track process to approve the defense deal on Monday. Opposition politicians said they supported the military investment but argued they had been given little time to scrutinize the deal, parts of which were confidential and required lawmakers to sign a statement before they could read it.
While the Albanian government did not disclose the interest rate or identify the equipment and services it plans to buy with the funds, the defense ministry said the loan will finance purchases for Albania’s air, ground and naval forces, along with cyber defense, command systems and military infrastructure, according to a statement to Bloomberg News.
The vote came as two-month-old protests dubbed the Flamingo Revolution continued outside parliament over planned luxury resorts linked to Jared Kushner, son-in-law of US President Donald Trump. Police detained several people on Monday as demonstrations now call for Prime Minister Edi Rama to resign.
The defense loan will be provided through the US Foreign Military Financing Program, with Washington represented by the Defense and Security Cooperation Agency. According to Taulant Ball, head of the parliamentary caucus of the ruling Socialist Party, it will be repaid over 12 years and paid gradually for specific military needs.
Albania would have 48 months to activate the funding, with a grace period of up to 12 months, Balla said.
Albania’s defense budget for 2026 is 58.9 billion leks, which is 12% more than last year and equal to 2.2% of GDP, according to the country’s defense ministry. That puts the country just above NATO’s previous 2% guideline, but below the alliance’s new target of 3.5% for 2035.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte confirmed this month that the alliance’s next summit will be held in Albania, although the timing has not been decided.
This article was generated from an automated news agency source without text modification.
