general, parliament stands at the top of the pyramid of democratic control over the armed forces. While it is true that the military should be under democratic control regarding security policy, security requirements, and the decision to use force, politicians should not micromanage. Micromanaging is not a task for politicians. However, military leadership must be held accountable for its actions and must operate within legal frameworks and according to priorities established by the political leadership. A successful defence policy relies on a climate of mutual respect, recognition of professional competence and transparent decision-making procedures that reflect military and political input. Ultimately, politics will prevail, but the armed forces should be allowed to exercise their powers, according to the standards of Western democracies. The line between the delegation of authority on the one hand and accountability on the other is a crucial issue for modern democracies. In the field of security and defence, parliamentary practices differ compared to other areas of government activity. All Western parliaments have standing committees on defence and the armed forces. Germany has perhaps the strictest parliamentary control over the defence budget 8 . France has a rapporteur whose findings are subject to general debate in Parliament 9 . The Netherlands practices several rounds of written comments and questions from all parties, to which the government responds before the debate takes place 10 . The challenge is to design a methodology for the constitutional role of parliament so that its control is professional and purposeful. If such a rigorous method is not formalized, then there is a risk that parliamentary control will turn into political rhetoric. Since democratic control is a broad topic, this paper will focus on analysing micromanagement in the Albanian Armed Forces, particularly with regard to human resources, assets, and the defence budget. 2. Powers regarding the defence budget The authority on drafting, approval, execution and control of the implementation of expenditures in the defence budget in Albania is left undefined according to Law 64/2014(amended by Law 98/2015). 11 Thus, one of the main pillars of democratic control over the Armed Forces remains evasive. How does it work in practice? The 8 Deutscher Bundestag: https://www.bundestag.de/ausschuesse/a12_verteidigung/arbeit-und-aufgaben-des­verteidigungsausschusses-englisch-. 9 Assemblée nationale: https://www2.assemblee-nationale.fr/langues/welcome-to-the-english-website-of-the­french-national-assembly#node_9501. 10 Tweede Kamer: https://www.houseofrepresentatives.nl/members_of_parliament/committees/def. 11 Parliament Decision: Ligji 64/2014(ndryshuar me ligjin 98/2015)“Për pushtetet dhe autoritetet e drejtimit e të komandimit të Forcave të Armatosura të Republikës së Shqipërisë”. DEMOCRATIC CONTROL AND MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN THE ARMED FORCES | 6