"I think the idea of recruiting Albanians in the Italian army is a good one and I don't think there is anything scandalous about it. Our demography is disastrous: the number of elderly people is rising and the number of young people is falling," Marzano told Il Messagero daily.

The Italian army is set to turn professional in 2005 with the end of conscription and is having trouble recruiting new members.

"At the end of serving five years in the army, the Albanians could then become Italian citizens, and on top of that they would have learnt a profession," he added.

There are more than 144,000 Albanians in Italy and they form the second largest immigrant group in the country. But Italians are sometimes wary of them, as mafia gangs of Albanian origin are said to be operating in Italy.

The Italian and Albanian police have already joined forces as the result of an accord signed between both countries in 1997 whereby the Italian police frequenty patrols Albanian waters looking for would-be illegal immigrants.

WAR.WIRE