{"id":155602,"date":"2026-06-11T12:33:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T12:33:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/155602\/"},"modified":"2026-06-11T12:33:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T12:33:09","slug":"inside-albania-and-israels-quietly-expanding-alliance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/155602\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside Albania and Israel’s quietly expanding alliance"},"content":{"rendered":"

In early June, Albania and Israel<\/a> signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on agriculture, food security, and innovation, the latest step in what analysts describe as an increasingly strategic partnership between the two countries.<\/p>\n

The agreement, which aims to modernise Albania’s farming sector through technological cooperation and scientific exchange, comes at a time when both governments are navigating political challenges at home and abroad.<\/p>\n

Israel continues to face growing international criticism<\/a> over its war on Gaza and mounting scrutiny from Western allies, while Albania is seeking to accelerate its long-standing bid for European Union (EU) membership amid corruption allegations and criticism directed at Prime Minister Edi Rama’s government.<\/p>\n

Yet the significance of the agreement extends beyond agriculture. In Albania, growing ties with Israel have unfolded alongside broader efforts to attract foreign investment and strengthen relations with key Western partners.<\/p>\n

And those efforts have increasingly come under public scrutiny. At the heart of the debate is a proposed luxury tourism resort on the island of Sazan, backed by Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law.<\/p>\n

In recent weeks, protests have erupted across the country<\/a> in opposition to what many Albanians see as a pattern in which strategic assets and public resources are opened to politically connected foreign investors.<\/p>\n

Against that backdrop, the latest agreement with Israel raises broader questions about the trajectory of relations between the two countries, while also highlighting a strategic alignment that has been quietly taking shape for years.<\/p>\n

Albania and Israel’s deepening ties<\/p>\n

While the agricultural memorandum has attracted attention, it represents only the latest development in a relationship that has steadily expanded across multiple sectors.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe two countries already cooperate in areas including defence, cybersecurity, tourism, health, investment, and economic development,\u201d Dimitris Dalakoglou, Professor of Social Anthropology and Sociology of Development at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, explained to The New Arab.<\/p>\n

\u201cRecent defence and security agreements suggest that relations have moved well beyond purely economic exchanges.\u201d<\/p>\n

Albania, home to a sizable Muslim population<\/a>, recognised Israel in 1949 and went on to establish full diplomatic relations several decades later in 1991.<\/p>\n

In 1998, Albania opened its embassy in Tel Aviv, while Israel inaugurated its embassy in Tirana in 2012, and several state visits have taken place since.<\/p>\n

Albania and Israel’s ties have expanded across a range of sectors in recent years. [Getty]<\/p>\n

In 2015,\u00a0Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a>\u00a0“lauded” Albania for being the only Nazi-occupied country in Europe to emerge with a higher Jewish population than it had before World War II.<\/p>\n

Since Israel\u2019s war on Gaza began in 2023, Albania has also vocally aligned with Israel diplomatically, choosing to abstain from condemnatory UN resolutions. Premier Edi Rama<\/a> has continued to express strong solidarity with Israel during the war and addressed the Knesset in January, where he praised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.<\/p>\n

According to Dalakoglou, the new MoU should be understood as \u201cpart of a broader trajectory\u201d of deepening Albania\u2013Israel relations, \u201cconsolidating an existing strategic partnership rather than creating a completely new one\u201d.<\/p>\n

In 2023, months before the start of Israel\u2019s war on the Gaza Strip, Albania and Israel signed a Memorandum of Understanding on military and defence cooperation.<\/p>\n

The pact was described as \u201cthe first\u201d of its kind between the two and intended to \u201ccreate a framework for joint military, defence, and industrial cooperation, including monitoring frameworks for developing new defence capabilities\u201d.<\/p>\n

In the same year, a cybersecurity agreement was also penned.<\/p>\n

In 2025, a major deal was signed to supply Albania with artillery systems and drones by Elbit Systems and to build a domestic production plant in the country.\u00a0Elbit Systems has been the target<\/a>\u00a0of pro-Palestinian protests over the years due to its role in producing equipment for the Israeli military.<\/p>\n

The June agreement is best understood as an extension of this evolving bilateral relationship, one also driven by deeper strategic and foreign policy objectives.<\/p>\n

Albania’s Western calculus<\/p>\n

For some analysts, Albania’s growing cooperation with Israel reflects broader foreign policy calculations.<\/p>\n

Azerbaijan-based analyst and journalist Rovshan Mammadli described Tirana’s outreach to Israel as a \u201cdemonstration of loyalty\u201d to the US, Israel\u2019s number one ally.<\/p>\n

As Albania seeks to strengthen its position within Western political structures and attract foreign investment, close ties with Washington and its partners carry both political and economic value.<\/p>\n

Although cooperation with Israel is not a prerequisite for EU membership, it reinforces Albania’s image as a reliable pro-Western actor at a time of growing geopolitical competition.<\/p>\n

Mammadli argues that the Rama government appears increasingly focused on maintaining that reputation.<\/p>\n

“Rama appears more concerned with preserving its reputation as a reliable pro-Western and pro-American partner than public opinion,” he told The New Arab.<\/p>\n

Dubbed the \u2018Flamingo Revolution, for two weeks, protestors have taken to the streets to voice their anger at a luxury resort project backed by Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law. [TNA\/Christopher Wilson]<\/p>\n

\u2018Flamingo Revolution\u2019<\/p>\n

Not all Albanians share the government’s enthusiasm for this approach.<\/p>\n

According to Dalakoglou, public criticism is driven less by Israel itself than by what such agreements represent.<\/p>\n

The government frequently presents foreign partnerships and investment projects as \u201cevidence of modernisation, international integration and economic opportunity,\u201d according to Dalakoglou. But critics view them through a different lens.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Public criticism is triggered] by ‘a broader model of development that many citizens believe privileges foreign capital and political elites over local communities and environmental concerns,\u201d he told\u00a0The New Arab.<\/p>\n

Such concerns have coalesced around the Kushner-linked development project, which many Albanians see as part of a pattern whereby public resources, the coastline, and other strategic assets are increasingly opened to global investors.<\/p>\n

Dubbed the \u2018Flamingo Revolution, for two weeks, protestors have taken to the streets to voice their anger at Rama\u2019s approval of the project, which would be built on the demilitarised island of Sazan, home to diverse fauna, particularly migratory birds.<\/p>\n

What Israel wants from Albania<\/p>\n

The growing relationship also offers important advantages<\/a> for Israel.<\/p>\n

As international criticism of Israel’s war on Gaza intensifies and diplomatic tensions have emerged with some traditional partners, cultivating relationships with countries beyond its core allies has taken on greater importance.<\/p>\n

In that context, Albania occupies a unique position. It is a predominantly Muslim country<\/a>, a NATO member, a candidate for EU membership, and one of the most pro-Western states in the Balkans.<\/p>\n

“Visible cooperation with Albania allows Israel to demonstrate that it continues to build partnerships beyond its traditional allies,” Dalakoglou explained.<\/p>\n

“Given Albania’s unique position as both a Muslim-majority society and a strongly pro-Western state, such relationships carry particular diplomatic value.”<\/p>\n

Some observers have compared this dynamic to Israel’s efforts to deepen ties<\/a> with countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Morocco following the Abraham Accords.<\/p>\n

As Albania seeks to strengthen its position within Western political structures and attract foreign investment, close ties with Washington and its partners carry weight. [Getty]<\/p>\n

While Albania’s relationship with Israel predates those agreements by decades, it nevertheless offers symbolic and diplomatic benefits at a time when Israel is seeking to counter perceptions of international isolation.<\/p>\n

Yet symbolism alone does not explain the relationship. For Mammadli, Albania-Israel relations \u201clie less\u201d in symbolism but instead rest on practical cooperation, strategic interests, and political alignment.<\/p>\n

The road to Brussels?<\/p>\n

Albania, like many countries in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, and the Caucasus, has been\u00a0vying for membership in the European Union<\/a>\u00a0for almost two decades. Tirana applied for membership in 2009 and has been an official candidate for accession since 2014.<\/p>\n

Amid delays linked to a Bulgarian veto and the fact that Albania\u2019s accession to the EU is tied with that of North Macedonia, joining the European bloc has gained rapid momentum in recent years, with French President Emmanuel Macron saying the country could join as early as 2027, despite an initial deadline set for 2030.<\/p>\n

As Albania rushes to seek further EU approval for its accession to the bloc, Tirana may feel compelled to present itself as a reliable Western partner and an attractive destination for international investment, despite the fact that no agreements with Israel are needed for its European ambitions.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether that helps depends on how such projects are perceived in terms of transparency, governance, environmental impact, and democratic accountability,\u201d Dalakoglou explained to TNA.<\/p>\n

Long plagued by corruption concerns, the billion-dollar Kushner project may instead provide a new challenge to Albania\u2019s EU bid.<\/p>\n

The European Commission, for example, has urged Tirana to \u201cact without delay\u201d to ensure it is aligned with EU environmental legislation if it wants to join the EU, amid concerns over the luxury resort\u2019s environmental impact.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile Albanian policymakers may see value in demonstrating they’re closely aligned with US strategic preferences by embracing Israel and Kushner, this cannot substitute for progress\u201d in areas such as EU accession ambitions, Mammadli warned.<\/p>\n

Sofia Aboudari is a journalist at The New Arab<\/p>\n

Edited by Charlie Hoyle<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In early June, Albania and Israel signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on agriculture, food security, and innovation,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":155603,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[33],"tags":[5291,2024,2026,1092,5656,37,2018,51],"class_list":["post-155602","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-israel","tag-abraham-accords","tag-albania","tag-balkans","tag-european-union","tag-gaza-war","tag-israel","tag-jared-kushner","tag-united-states"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@iran\/116731497864393641","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/155602","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=155602"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/155602\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/155603"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=155602"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=155602"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=155602"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}