Croatia, Albania newest NATO members

BRUSSELS, April 2 (UPI) -- NATO Thursday welcomed Albania and Croatia into its family, just in time for the alliance's 60th anniversary.

The addition of the two Balkan countries marks only the sixth time the organization has expanded its membership, bringing to 28 the number of allies that will celebrate six decades since the North Atlantic Treaty was endorsed at an April 4, 1949, ceremony in Washington, the Defense Department said.

"Today, Albania and Croatia have completed the accession process, and have joined the Alliance as members. I warmly congratulate them on this historic achievement," NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said Wednesday in a statement issued from the NATO headquarters in Brussels. "In becoming NATO members, Albania and Croatia share the benefits and responsibilities of collective security,"

Further expansion is expected to be one of the topics during the NATO summit Friday and Saturday in in Strasbourg, France, and Kehl, Germany, where the two Balkan nations will be inducted, the Pentagon said.

A flag-raising ceremony marking the inclusion of Albania and Croatia is scheduled for Tuesday at NATO Headquarters in Brussels.