Albanian–Yugoslav conflict

After the paramilitary Operation Valuable, Yugoslavia decided to continue their operation to prevent itself from going to war with Albania.[7] They sent Yugoslav Army agents to Albania to check the situation there[8]

In 1949 the Albanian–Yugoslav conflict widened considerably and came close to a possible war.[9] Enver Hoxha sought to concentrate the entire state and political apparatus of Albania on 'the unmasking of the bourgeois and anti-communist policy of Yugoslavia'. The information and propaganda[10] disseminated by both countries changed accordingly.[11]

In 1950 the Yugoslav Agent Forces were supposed to recruit the Tito clique made up of Serbs, Albanian Royalists[12] and Greek volunteers[13][14] and get them ready for the mission.[15][16][17]

In 1951, three Yugoslav army divisions were deployed to the Albanian border area, one near Podgorica, a motorized division in Skopje and another between Dibra and Ohrid. The Albanian authorities were alerted and subsequently arrested more than 150 people(responsible Yugoslav agents) who were considered dangerous or suspicious in the border areas with Yugoslavia.[18][19] They recruited a total of 3600 men[17] for this operation, they also called the agents either Tito's agents or Tito's soldiers[20]

The mission of Tito's agents/soldiers was to overthrow the regime in Albania by releasing propaganda documents, bringing information to Yugoslavia and exposing the situation in Albania. The Yugoslav forces were assisted with equipment by the CIA.[21]

In 1948, after UDBA sent its agents to Albania, their agents were all caught. The Yugoslav UDBA still tried to protect their agents but they were arrested by the Albanian border guards and the Yugoslavs of the UDBA were tortured and their heads were beaten up with chairs by the Sigurimi. In 1948, after the conflict was spreading, Albanian border guard soldiers decided to take revenge. They invaded Yugoslav territory with 225 Albanian soldiers and attacked Yugoslav soldiers and citizens, killing 10 Yugoslav soldiers, wounding 15 Yugoslav citizens and kidnapping 3 UDBA agents.[22]

Albanian attack on Yugoslav territory
Part of Cold War
Date 1948 Location Albanian-Yugoslav border, Yugoslavia Result Albanian attack successful
Belligerents
Albania Albanian Armed Forces	Yugoslavia Yugoslav Armed Forces
Commanders and leaders
Enver Hoxha	Josip Broz Tito
Strength
250 soldiers	Unknown
Casualties and losses
Unknown	10 soldiers killed 15 citizens wounded 3 UDBA Agents captured

Many of the soldiers were either bugged, captured and sent to labor camps or to court and charged with a death penalty.[23] In the late 1970s, the Albanian leader Enver Hoxha planned to invade Yugoslavia after the death of Tito in order to retake Kosovo, as well as parts of Montenegro and Macedonia where the Albanian majority were inhabited, in order to create a Greater Albania again.[24][25]

We have been supporting Kosovars (Kosovo Albanians) with all our might, whenever and to the extent to which the circumstances allowed. And we are in favor of them uniting with Albania because that would ensure national unity

— Kadri Hazbiu