Congrats

Congratulations are in order for both Albania and Croatia that this week are formalizing their entrance into NATO as the 27th and 28th member, respectively.
Below also the Press Release from :

Congressman Eliot Engel
Representing the Bronx, Westchester, and Rockland Counties
Offices in the Bronx, Mount Vernon and West Nyack
2161 Rayburn HOB, Washington, DC 20515
Contact: Jason Steinbaum at 202-226-9980
For Release: Wednesday, April 1, 2009

ENGEL CONGRATULATES ALBANIA ON NATO MEMBERSHIP

Washington, DC -- Rep. Eliot L. Engel, Chair of the Congressional Albanian Issues Caucus, congratulated the Republic of Albania on joining the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) alliance today.

"I extend my warmest congratulations to the people of Albania as their country takes its rightful place among the democratic member states of NATO. Only twenty short years ago, no one would have predicted that Albania, previously the most closed nation in Europe, would have become a member of the North Atlantic alliance. This is a great day for Albanians everywhere and another step forward for European security." said Rep. Engel, a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Albania and Croatia became NATO's 27th and 28th member states today after their ambassadors to the United States filed their instruments of accession at a ceremony in Washington. "It is remarkable that NATO's two newest members come from a region which faced multiple wars during the last decade," said Rep. Engel

"Albania, which has sent troops to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Bosnia, has already been taking up its responsibilities as an active and reliable partner in Europe. Its addition to NATO only further demostrates the positive security contributions Albania is already making," said Rep. Engel.

Rep. Engel was the author of the resolution which passed the House of Representatives in November 2003 urging the incorporation of the Adriatic Charter countries, including Albania and Croatia, into NATO. The resolution passed by a vote of 416-1.