Albanian-Macedonian War (1983: Doomsday)

The Albanian-Macedonian War was a conflict between the Kingdom of Macedonia and the People's Republic of Albania that was fought between May 15, 2009 and June 26, 2010. The war ended with the Macedonian capture of the Albanian capital of Elbasan and resulted in large parts of Albania being annexed by Macedonia and the dissolution of the People's Republic of Albania.

Background
The background of the war began in late 2007, a harsh winter put a strain on the resources of Albania's government and it looked like the country might soon have to abandon its self-imposed isolation and look for outside sources for food and water. This occurred in November of 2008 when contact was made between Albania and its eastern neighbor, Macedonia.

The two countries established relations and Macedonia began to import large amounts of food into Albania. Then by March 2009, the Albanian government began to demand Macedonia also share their military technology, to which the Macedonian government staunchly refused. Tensions mounted between the two countries and in late March 2009, a Macedonian intelligence agent reported a builld-up by the Albanian Army along border. The news comes as a suprise to the Macedonian government, but is pushed aside as Albania isn't seen as a serious threat.

But as the months roll on, reports of this build-up continues and the numbers continues to grow, until on May 12, 2009, the Macedonian Assembly issued an ultimatum to the Albanian government, stating they had 72 hours to break-up the build-up or Macedonia will declare war. On May 15, 2009, Macedonia, after Albania had not answered to the ultimatum, declared war, and the conflict began.

Albanian Invasion: May 2009-November 2009
On May 21, 2009 the Albanian First Army Group, consisting of 60,000 soldiers and 30 tanks, launched its offensive against a heavily defended Macedonian line along its border with Albania. The Macedonian Army had been organized into the Macedonian Domestic Defense Forces, consisting of 30,000 soldiers and 40 tanks. The Macedonians, even with all their strength through better technology and a largely defended line, were forced to retreat due to the sheer weight of the Albanian numbers.

The Albanian battle plan was to move deep into Macedonia and then move towards Skopje and Bitola, the two biggest Macedonian cities. The First Army Group was then split into two armies, each consisting of 30,000 soldiers, and then split into two divisions each of 15,000 soldiers. The First Army advanced towards Gostiver, a major Macedonian town and vital stop on the road to Skopje. The Second Army, meanwhile, advanced south into Kioevo, also a major road stop, then was to south to Bitola. The next few months of the war would prove to be long and treacherous, and plagued by bloodshed.

Winter War: December 2009-January 2010
The winter of 2009-2010 brought a wide-scale stalemate all along the front and the main priority of the Albanian commanding officers was keeping their soldiers alive and their morale high enough to fight in the spring. The Macedonians were better off as they moved into Macedonia's major towns to build formidable defenses over the winter and were given warm clothes, food, and housing. The Albanians, however, were given poor clothing and food and were forced to outlast the winter in their trenches and foxholes. Frostbite and disease were rampant among the Albanian lines and by the end of the summer as many as 9,000 Albanians were either killed or forced off the line because of disease. But as the winter rolled on, the Albanians continued to move troops up to the front to prepare for a full assault on Macedonia in the spring. But as the spring began to come the Albanians planned to move, and the Macedonians planned to counter them.

Renewed Albanian Advance: March 2010-May 2010
After the March thaw finally arrived in Macedonia, the Albanian forces had been reinforced over the winter so that their numbers reached up to 140,000 soldiers and 60 tanks. The Macedonians had used the winter to train new recruits conscripted from all over Macedonia and their numbers had been increased to 180,000.

Battle of Gostiver
The Battle of Gostiver began on April 16, 2010 when the Albanians arrived at the town of Gostiver, a major road stop on the Albanian path to Skopje. The Albanians attacked the city with 12,000 troops, while the Macedonians defended the city with 5,000 troops of the Macedonian 3rd Brigade. The Macedonians had spent the entire winter preparing for an attack on the town, and when it finally came, they were well prepared. The Albanians were divided into four 3,000-man brigades and were sent in on a general assault on the Macedonian lines, which were built mostly along the roads to the east of the town. While three of the these brigades were thrown straight at the Macedonians, the fourth one was sent south to go around the Macedonian lines from behind and flank them. This maneuver was successful, as the Macedonians were forced to retreat to a second line of defense within the town.

Over the next week their lines were pushed back to the city park, where the Macedonians had set up two howitzer guns that began to pound against the Albanian advance. Two other major centers of operation, the Cultural Center and Town Hall, were put near the front line that were also heavily defended. As the days poured on, however, Albanian casualties continued to mount and eventually their lines had stagnated so much that the Macedonians began planning a counterattack. On April 27 the Macedonians launched their counterattack, backed up with 7 tanks against the Albanians' 5, and with 4,500 soldiers left to fight the Albanians 9,200. Attacking in 5 groups of 900 men, they were able to push the Albanians back to the edge of the town in on April 28, and then completely out of the city the next day. On April 30 the last pocket of Albanian troops surrendered and the Battle of Gostiver was finally over.

The most important result of the battle was that the commanding officer of the Albanian army, one of the members of the Albanian Supreme Council, was captured and remained in Macedonian hands until the end of the war. The battle would pave the way for a major counteroffensive to begin later in May.

Battle of Kioevo
The Battle of Kievo began on March 17, when the fast moving Second Albanian Army, accompanied by 40 tanks, moved into Macedonia, with plans to capture Kioevo, a major road stop on the way to Bitola, the army's ultimate goal. Defending the town were only 10,000 men against the Albanian Second Army of 100,000. The Macedonians had heavily prepared for this assault, which they knew had to come by road, and set up blockades to keep the tanks out of the town.

The Albanian attack came from two directions, the north and the south. After the first two days of fighting, the Macedonian had been pushed back widely in the north, but only a minimum in the south. Knowing that this northern area would likely be the route taken by the Albanian tanks, it was heavily defended. The next two days, the Macedonians would be pushed back further. On March 22, they had been surrounded by two pincers of the Albanian forces and were forced to surrender.

The battle had been a clear and decisive victory for the Albanians, who then moved south into Bitola, but it ended up working to the Macedonian's advantage, as the days the Albanians had been stalled had allowed the forces in Bitola to prepare their final defenses that would prove to be very decisive in the next few days.

Battle of Bitola