Pasha Liman Base | |
---|---|
Vlorë, Albania | |
Coordinates | 40°19′26″N 19°25′09″E / 40.323889°N 19.419167°E |
Type | Naval Base |
Site information | |
Controlled by |
Albanian Navy Turkish Navy |
Site history | |
In use | Formerly: People's Socialist Republic of Albania Soviet Union (until 1961) |
The Pasha Liman Base, or Pashaliman Base, is an Albanian Navy base south of Vlorë, Albania.
Pashaliman was the only Soviet base in the Mediterranean in the 1950s. [2] It was the hot spot of conflict between the Soviets and the Albanians in 1961 when Albania pulled out of the Warsaw Pact and the dispute of the four Whiskey-class submarine ownership which Albania had seized. [3] Following the collapse of the Communist regime, the base was rebuilt by Turkey and under a bilateral agreement the Turkish Navy has the right to use it. [1] [4] [5]
Three of the Albanian Navy's four Damen Stan patrol vessels were built at Pashaliman, the most recent completed in 2014. [6] Currently, four retired Whiskey-class submarines previously owned by the Soviet Union are still located on the facility alongside Albania's active-duty naval vessels. They can be seen via satellite images of the base.
The Naval Force often operates naval exercises in the Bay of Vlorë, out of Pashaliman. [7] This includes exercises with other nations, such as the United Kingdom. [8] The most recent[ citation needed] exercise, Sarex '16, took place in April 2016. [9]
An Albanian-Turkish military cooperation agreement was signed in 1992 that encompassed rebuilding Albania's Pasha Liman Base by Turkey alongside granted access for Turkish use. [1]
A civilian naval engineering firm and shipyard also operate out of the military facility, providing a wide range of services. [10]
albania.