Albania–Greece relations

Rama said during his visit to Jerusalem on Monday that Albania is ready to collaborate with its ally Israel in order to contribute to the country's security.

The agreement also expressed the willingness to cooperate in the fields of energy, agriculture, water management, tourism and culture.

Greek FM Nikos Kotzias briefed political party representatives on Wednesday of recent visits of southeast European capitals, declaring afterwards that crisis-plagued Greece is “returning to the Balkans”.

The venue was a meeting of a national council on foreign policy, with Kotzias briefing participants on his talks and contacts in visits to no less than seven regional countries.

Albanian PM Edi Rama on Wednesday fielded a question on relations with Greece and the recently emerged issue that Tirana tabled regarding the delineation of maritime borders in the Ionian Sea.
Rama answered the press question as he appeared with his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic at a press conference. Vucic is on a closely watched on a two-day visit to Tirana.

A strong-worded demarche delivered by Albania to Greek authorities over energy exploration indicates that Tirana is asserting territorial claims along the land border dividing the two Balkan neighbors, Kathimerini understands.

"Albania has a clear European perspective and we discussed today the way forward in this process," Mogherini said on Tuesday after a meeting in Brussels with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama.

"I welcome Prime Minister Rama's firm commitment to the European path of Albania, including the necessary reform work," Mogherini added.

MOSCOW - Renewed "pan-Albanian" rhetoric is unlikely to contribute to preserving the climate of stability and good-neighborliness in the Balkans, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a comment to remarks of Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama on Kosovo's unification with Albania.

Albania "promised there's be no change of borders"

PRAGUE -- Albanian Foreign Minister Ditmir Bushati has said that "the aspiration of Albanians is to join the EU because it unites people and nations."

BELGRADE - The Serbian Foreign Ministry presented Albanian Ambassador to Serbia with a letter of protest condemning a recent unacceptable statement made by Albania Prime Minister Edi Rama about a unification of Albania and Kosovo.

Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic has gone on Twitter to declare that Serbia will never let Albania and Kosovo unify in one state.

His tweet on Tuesday came after Serbian media reports claimed that Edi Rama of Albania had said that if the EU failed to allow the two states to unite within a borderless Europe, they would unify in "the classical way".

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said on Sunday that we must cooperation between Germans and Greeks should seen as having mutual benefit. Following his meeting with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias, he said that both countries should work to strengthen the two countries mutual trust.