Mediu says Albanian troops will stay in Iraq as long as U.S. troops

TIRANA, Sept. 27 _ Defense Minister Fatmir Mediu said continuously during the whole week until the meeting of the southeastern Defense Ministerial meeting Wednesday that Albanian troops will stay in Iraq as long as United States forces stay there. “We have declared that we shall stay in Iraq as long as the U.S. forces stay there to accomplish their mission,” repeating the same sentence from Monday till Wednesday. The Albanian army unit serves in Iraq under U.S.-led command in a non-combat role, mainly patrolling the airport in the Iraqi city of Mosul. Albania, a predominantly Muslim country, strongly backed the U.S.-led war in Iraq. Although it was unable to provide significant military support, it opened its airspace and offered U.S.-led forces the use of its bases. The tiny Balkan country also has peacekeeping contingents in Bosnia and Afghanistan in an effort to achieve NATO membership in 2008. Mediu also added Wednesday that the government was thinking, considering increasing troops in Afghanistan.