Deteriorating economic and social conditions accelerated in Albania and led to a series of riots and civil disobedience, centred on the capital, Tirana in Mar 1997.
The British Government ordered the Royal Navy to undertake a Non-combatant Evacuation Operation (NEO) and assist in evacuating Brits from the country. Type 42 destroyer HMS Birmingham (already in the Adriatic, operating in support of SFOR) was ordered to stand off Durrës - the nearest port on the coast to Tirana.
Other countries took parallel action to support their nationals, principally the Americans (Operation Silver Wake), Germans (Operation Libelle) and the Italians. The contributions of those nations are summarised here.
The British Government ordered the Royal Navy to undertake a Non-combatant Evacuation Operation (NEO) and assist in evacuating Brits from the country. Type 42 destroyer HMS Birmingham (already in the Adriatic, operating in support of SFOR) was ordered to stand off Durrës - the nearest port on the coast to Tirana.
Other countries took parallel action to support their nationals, principally the Americans (Operation Silver Wake), Germans (Operation Libelle) and the Italians. The contributions of those nations are summarised here.
Units |
| Dates | Unit | Models |
|---|---|---|
Ships |
| Classes | Ships | |
|---|---|---|
| Guided-Missile Destroyer | Type 42 (Batch 1 and 2) class |  D86 HMS Birmingham, D89 HMS Exeter, |
| Frigate | F 122 Bremen class |  F208 Niedersachsen, |
| Assault Carrier | Tarawa class |  LHA-4 USS Nassau, |
