Operation Valuable
The Anglo-American intervention in Communist Albania, codenamed Operation Valuable, was a significant Cold War military conflict conducted by the United Kingdom and the United States, in collaboration with Western allies. This covert operation aimed to overthrow the government led by Enver Hoxha. The intervention sought to counter Communist influence and reinstate a leadership aligned with the Western powers. The operation involved strategic military actions, incorporating air, naval, and ground assets in pursuit of its objectives.
Operation Valuable | |||||||
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Part of the Cold War | |||||||
Top left: American Forces in Munich Germany, Recruiting Paramilitary Soldiers Top right: U.S. Colonel F. H. Dunn inspecting the anti-communist "Kompania 4000" during training at Hohenbrunn in Bavaria in November 1950. Bottom left: The Sigurimi with a captured CIA agent. Bottom right: Tito gives green light to U.S General John C. H. Lee to take down fellow communist ruler Enver Hoxha. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Hoxha's regime: Communist Albania |
Western Bloc: Separatists: KEVA | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Enver Hoxha Mehmet Shehu Kadri Hazbiu |
Harry S Truman Dean Acheson Frank Wisner Franklin Lindsay James G. McCargar Roman Rudkowski (Ex-Colonel of the Polish Air Force) Clement Attlee David Smiley Julian Amery Peter Kemp Alexandros Papagos Panteleimon Kotokos Josip Broz Tito Vlado Popović Konrad Adenauer | ||||||
Units involved | |||||||
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UDBA | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
unknown |
Initial invasion: / 500 Agents / 2,000 paramilitary soldiers 5 submarines 180 C-47 aircraft 80 landing craft assault boats 6 landing craft utility 7,500 commandos | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
unknown |
1949–1954 / 300 Anglo-Americans killed 961 Western Allied forces killed 33 Yugoslav agents of the UDBA were captured or executed 60 Western Agents were killed | ||||||
400 civilians executed |
MI6 and the CIA launched a joint subversive operation, using Albanian expatriates as agents. Other anti-communist Albanians and many nationalists worked as agents for Greek and Italian intelligence services, some supported by the Anglo-American secret services. Many of the agents were caught, put on trial, and either shot or condemned to long prison terms at penal labour.