Anglo-American Covert Action in Albania: Seven Critiques of the Orthodox Historiography of Operation BGFiend/Valuable

This article presents seven critiques of orthodox historiography on the early Cold War CIA/MI6 covert action against Albania. It argues that Operation BGFiend/Valuable pursued limited subversion and harassment aims, not rollback/regime change; its deficiencies have been exaggerated and its accomplishments and organisational professionalism overlooked, but the Anglo-Americans did mislead their Albanian émigré partners about their waning commitment to overthrowing Hoxha; casualty rates were lower than commonly claimed; communist Albanian agency shaped the campaign’s execution and impact; regional actors also influenced its aims, methods and outcomes; Kim Philby’s role has been widely overstated; and the operation continued for longer and was broader in scope than often recognized. These findings substantially redress the image of a disastrous operation conducted by complacent and arrogant western intelligence agencies. They also create a broader international perspective illustrating the crucial roles played by regional actors including the Albanian state, anti-communist dissidents, Yugoslavia, Greece and Italy.