Athens slams Tirana square makeover as 'concealing irredentism'

The Greek Foreign Ministry on Monday night issued an announcement accusing the Albanian government of an "action that cultivates and conceals irredentism" in the renovation of the capital's main Skenderbeg Square.

The square, unveiled earlier this month, is paved with slabs of stones from different parts of the Balkans to symbolize "national unity."

"We condemn the placement, in Tirana's redeveloped central square, of stones from various regions of the Balkans, including from the Greek region of Filiates," the ministry said. "These stones, on which their regions of origin are inscribed, constitute a work that symbolizes the 'unity of Albanian territories' and is clearly a state action that cultivates and conceals irredentism."

The ministry went on to label the initiative as "yet another provocation from the Albanian government, which is openly undermining good...