Albania willing to send peacekeepers to Lebanon, increase troops in Afghanistan

Albania is ready to send a peacekeeping force for an international mission in Lebanon and contribute more troops to Afghanistan, Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha said on Monday.

"Albania is considering sending more troops to Afghanistan and we are discussing with partner countries for our presence in Lebanon," Berisha told a conference organized by the Albanian parliament on NATO membership.

Albania, Croatia and Macedonia signed the Adriatic Charter with the U.S. in May 2003 to facilitate their integration into NATO. They hope to get the signal to join the bloc at the Riga summit later this year.

Berisha said Albania is determined to "undertake any reforms and to pay any price" to get the country admitted into the NATO club.

Albania has 22 peacekeeping troops in Afghanistan serving under Turkish command. It also has 70 troops in Bosnia and 120 troops in Iraq.

Source: Xinhua