Albania joins EU in sanctions against Russia

TIRANA, March 24 – Albania has became part of a large group of European countries setting sanctions on Russia, following its takeover of the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine.
Albania and five other non-EU countries in the Balkan region and beyond joined the block’s sanctions against Russia.
The news came from a statement from the office of the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Catherine Ashton.
The statement says that Montenegro, Albania, Iceland and Moldova, in accordance with the Stabilization and Association Agreement, adopted European sanctions against Russia, including a travel ban and freezing of accounts to a number of Russian and Crimean officials.
Norway and Liechtenstein, which are not members of the EU, but are the part of the European Economic Community, also have joined the sanctions.
“The European Union takes note of these decisions and welcomes them,” said Ashton.
The European Union and non-member countries in the region are supporting diplomatic efforts to put an end to the Ukrainian crisis and ensure a peaceful settlement of what many say is the worst impasse since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.
As part of the diplomatic efforts to tackle the standoff in Ukraine, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) dispatched a team of observers from different countries, including Romania, Turkey and Albania. Moscow continues to reject the observers in Crimea.
Albert Rakipi, executive director of the Albanian Institute for International Studies, said that Albania’s participation with two observers in the OSCE mission is a demonstration of the country’s positive will and support for all the Western policies regarding Ukraine.
“This is part of a more active concept in the foreign policy,” Rakipi said.