Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has received Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama in Ankara to discuss bilateral relations as well as regional and global developments.
“Türkiye and Albania are two NATO allies contributing to the preservation of peace and stability in the Balkans,” Erdogan said on Tuesday, addressing a joint news conference with Rama.
Following the leaders' meeting, Ankara and Tirana signed six agreements, further strengthening the contractual basis of their bilateral relations.
Rama, for his part, said Albania would always cherish Türkiye's immediate recognition of Kosovo's independence alongside its support following the earthquakes in Albania and its vaccination assistance during the Covid-19 pandemic.
"You told me that as long as Türkiye stands, Albania will not be forsaken," Rama said to Erdogan.
On the subject of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind a failed coup in Türkiye in 2016 that has continued operations in other countries, Erdogan said: “We will not allow the nefarious network attempting to poison our relations through the FETO terrorist organisation to succeed; we will continue our fight against them.”
The Turkish president added that Türkiye has elevated its trade volume with Albania to the level of $1 billion, and now they seek to double this to $2 billion.
War in Gaza
During the press conference on Tuesday, the two leaders also touched on Israel's relentless war against Palestinians in Gaza.
Erdogan recalled that Albania stood on “the right side of history” in December's UN General Assembly vote, backing an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the besieged city.
He stressed the importance of solidarity with the “oppressed Palestinian people” especially now, over four months since Israel began its military offensive in Gaza.
Rama also called for an immediate ceasefire and the release of hostages, emphasising Tirana's support for a two-state solution. He added that Türkiye is an indispensable actor for peace in the Middle East, especially now in Gaza.
Rama emphasised Tirana's support for a two-state solution, but also stressed the need for guarantees to make this work, suggesting that Arab countries could provide security assurances by cooperating with Türkiye.
Pointing to the need to end the accusations made against innocent people by Israel and subsequent massacres, Rama stressed the need for rational action.
Israel's bombardment of Gaza has so far killed nearly 30,000 Palestinians and injured more than 69,000, destroying critical infrastructure and causing mass shortages of necessities.
