NATO and Albania’s security reforms

TIRANA, March 31 – the Albanian Institute for International Studies (AIIS) and the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP) also organized the Conference “Security Sector Reform: Challenges and Priorities” which gathered Albanian government representatives, members of parliament and the international community, media, Albanian and international academics as well as non-governmental organizations in the Conference “Security Sector Reform: Challenges and Priorities”.
Organizers provided a defining framework of security, seen from a state and human perspective.
Defense Minister Gazmend Oketa gave a detailed overview of government’s reforms in the security sector. Full NATO membership, expected on 4th April, makes the initiative of the Institute for International Studies and its partners to evaluate the state of affairs in the security sector through his Conference not only timely but also necessary.
The presentations on the role and importance of institutions, such as the National Assembly and the Security Committee, on the reforms, especially with respect to law-drafting, budget scrutiny and oversight, was followed by an analysis of the challenges in the reformation of the national intelligence services. On this point, the tension between the democratic control, rule of law and accountability that must characterize intelligence services in a modern democratic state and the secretive nature of the services themselves was explored with a view to possible solutions. The participation of representatives from this service allowed for important feedback on the issue and shed light on significant difficulties in this component of the security sector.
The best practices and experiences shared by international counterparts were then compared to and brought home in the third session of the conference centered around the presentation of a report on the international contribution and assistance in security sector reform. The discussion that followed highlighted the problems with simply importing models from other countries and explored the possibilities for local ownership of the reform process.
The significance of NATO membership for security sector reform and its spill-over effects in other spheres of activity in Albania was also discussed.
Together with the Institute of International Studies, the newly established Council on Foreign Relations will continue to respond to the need for structured debate and public awareness-raising through the high level forums, seminars, conferences, studies and research that it will conduct, thus shaping a proper Albanian body of international and integration studies, encouraging an active and participatory approach to the country’s political processes.