Albania also voices solidarity with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf partners after Iran’s missile attacks.
Tirana Times, March 1, 2026 – Albania threw its support behind U.S. strikes on Iran in the opening hours of the latest Middle East escalation, with Prime Minister Edi Rama declaring that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps should be officially designated a terrorist organization and saying Tirana would move to list it as such, citing Albania’s own experience with Iranian-linked cyberattacks and its national security concerns.
“The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is a terrorist organization and it must be treated as such. Not only through sanctions against the Khomeinist Republic, but by officially calling it by its true name and listing it among terrorist organizations, as the United States and Canada have already done,” Rama said in a public statement issued after the strikes.
Rama tied Albania’s stance to several layers of alignment and condemnation, while arguing that the moment called for actions rather than words. “Not only because we stand firm with Israel and with the peace-seeking brotherly Arab countries. Not only because we support the United States in militarily supporting Israel today under the leadership of President Donald Trump. Not only because the European Union, through President Ursula von der Leyen, has once again underlined today the murderous nature of the Tehran regime,” he said.
“But first and foremost, on a day like this, when acts, not just words, are required, in honoring the endless innocent victims of the bloody Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” Rama added.
Albania’s relationship with Iran has been openly hostile since Tirana cut diplomatic ties and expelled Iranian diplomats after major cyberattacks that Albanian authorities blamed on Iran or groups linked to Tehran. Rama returned to that point on Friday, portraying the crisis as more than distant geopolitics for his country.
“Albania has faced firsthand the barbaric face of the Tehran regime through its cyber aggressions against our country. For us, this is not abstract geopolitics. It is national security, moral and legal clarity,” he said.
He then signaled specific steps Albania intends to take and urged European governments to follow. “Albania will act accordingly. We will call the Revolutionary Guard what it is and list it among terrorist organizations, and we call upon our European friends to do the same,” Rama said.
Rama also endorsed what he described as decisive efforts to prevent Iran from developing military capabilities that could threaten Israel or other states in the Middle East. “We fully endorse every decisive effort to prevent once and for all the murderers in Tehran from acquiring nuclear or any other military capacity to harm Israel or any other peace-loving nation in the Middle East. Terrorism must be named. And once named, it must be stopped,” he said.
Former Albanian deputy prime minister Genc Pollo, now a senior associate researcher at the Albanian Institute for International Studies, said the operation was aimed at a regime he described as threatening well beyond the region. “The United States and Israel this morning began an aerial combat operation against the hostile Ayatollah regime in Iran,” Pollo said. “This regime threatens not only Israel, America and the Middle East, but also Europe; it threatens Albania as well, and it has shown this in past years.”
“I hope the operation will be successful and will result in a free, democratic and peaceful Iran, as well as in a Middle East more stabilized than it was,” he added.
Solidarity with Saudi Arabia and partners after missile strikes
In a further update on March 1, Rama broadened his messaging beyond support for U.S. action, posting on X after missile strikes hit multiple Gulf states. He described the attacks as a blow to the region’s stability and prosperity, praised Saudi Arabia and Qatar for what he called responsible leadership, and argued that strikes on critical infrastructure and civilian areas could not be treated as merely local events.
“Saudi Arabia and Qatar, two radiant jewels in the shining crown of a new Middle East defined by hope, breathtaking development, and bold regional cooperation, have once again shown what responsible leadership looks like in the face of reckless aggression,” Rama wrote. “The missiles were intercepted, the threat neutralized, and the message unmistakable: those who gamble on chaos will be met with strength and precision.”
“When critical infrastructure and civilian areas are targeted, this is never a ‘local incident.’ It is an attack on stability itself, on prosperity, on the shared vision of a Gulf that has chosen progress over provocation and partnership over paranoia,” he added.
Rama said the interceptions reflected advanced capabilities and coordination, but emphasized unity as the decisive factor. “Their ability to bring down the missiles reflects not only advanced defense capabilities and seamless coordination, but also strategic clarity and unwavering resolve. Yet beyond technology and tactics, the true power lies in unity: in Gulf nations standing shoulder to shoulder against those who mistake disruption for influence,” he wrote.
He concluded with an explicit message of solidarity for additional partners. “Full and unwavering solidarity as well with Kuwait and Bahrain. In the Gulf, security is indivisible. The safety of one is the strength of all,” Rama said.
Albania’s main opposition leader, former President Sali Berisha, also issued a statement condemning Iran’s attacks on Gulf countries and expressing solidarity with what he called friendly states.
“The autocratic regime in Tehran has chosen as its path of survival a reckless aggression against the Persian Gulf countries — Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain,” Berisha said.
“The Democratic Party expresses full solidarity with these friendly countries and condemns in the strongest terms the attacks by the Ayatollahs’ regime against them as a clear act of aggression,” he added.
Albert Rakipi, a former deputy foreign minister of Albania and chairman of the Albanian Institute for International Studies, said Tehran was sending mixed signals as it sought to pressure the region while looking for political cover. “The Iranian regime is making desperate moves, seeking to project strength through escalation and by attacking Gulf countries,” Rakipi said. “What stands out, however, is the calm, disciplined response from the Gulf capitals and, above all, Saudi Arabia’s central leadership: Riyadh is setting the strategic tone, coordinating closely with partner governments, and turning unity into deterrence. This is not just crisis management; it is regional leadership guided by a clear strategic compass.”
Regional alignment in the Western Balkans and Saudi Arabia’s message of collective security
In the Western Balkans, U.S. allies also moved quickly to publicly endorse Washington’s actions. Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani issued a strong statement of support that framed the strikes as a turning point for Iran’s population and reaffirmed Kosovo’s alignment with the United States and its partners.
“The hour of freedom has come for the people of Iran, thanks to the leadership of the United States and President @realDonaldTrump. As always, the Republic of Kosovo unwaveringly stands with the United States and its allies in defending freedom, peace, security, and stability. We also strongly condemn the attacks of the Iranian regime against our allies in the Middle East. We will continue to support the actions undertaken by the United States and other allies to put an end to the Iranian regime and finally give freedom and peace a chance,” Osmani said.
Kosovo’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora issued its own full statement, describing Iran as a destabilizing force and backing Washington’s approach. “The United States of America has launched a military attack on the Ayatollahs’ regime in Iran, a regime that for decades has oppressed its own people, destabilized the region, and threatened international peace and security,” the ministry said.
“We stand with President Donald Trump in his effort to deter regimes that threaten free peoples, to protect global stability, and to support the legitimate aspirations of the Iranian people for freedom, dignity, and democracy,” it added.
The statement concluded with a broader warning about regimes it said rely on oppression and violence. “Regimes that oppress their citizens, that support violence against democratic countries, and that threaten other peoples cannot be a factor of peace,” the ministry said.
North Macedonia’s foreign minister, Timčo Mucunski, also publicly backed the United States, while emphasizing diplomacy and deterrence and expressing solidarity with Gulf partners. “We stand with our American allies in confronting destabilizing threats in the Middle East,” he said.
“The United States has made clear that diplomacy is always the first option – but deterrence remains essential when credible risks persist. Security, stability, and accountability go hand in hand,” Mucunski added.
He said North Macedonia’s embassies and consular teams in the region were working to support citizens and provide assistance, and condemned Iranian attacks on Gulf states. “We also reaffirm our full solidarity with our partners in the Gulf. Attacks against GCC countries by Iran are unacceptable and risk wider regional escalation,” he said.
Saudi Arabia, a pivotal actor in Gulf security and one of the most influential voices in the Arab and Muslim worlds, has used a series of official statements to frame Iran’s missile launches as a direct assault on regional stability and on the sovereignty of multiple states, while underscoring a collective-security message across the Gulf. Riyadh condemned what it called Iran’s “blatant aggression” and “flagrant violation” of the sovereignty of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan, declared full solidarity with the targeted countries, and said it was ready to place “all its capabilities” at their disposal to support whatever measures they choose to take. The Kingdom also warned that continued violations of sovereignty and international law carry “grave consequences.”
In a separate statement focused on attacks directed at Saudi territory, Riyadh said missiles targeting the Riyadh region and the Eastern Province were intercepted, describing the strikes as “blatant and cowardly” and rejecting any attempt to justify them “under any pretext.” It also highlighted that Iran was aware of Saudi Arabia’s earlier position that it would not allow its airspace or territory to be used to launch attacks on Iran, a point aimed at reinforcing Riyadh’s posture of defensive legitimacy and limiting Tehran’s efforts to portray the Kingdom as an operational platform in the conflict.
The Saudi messaging was reinforced by a readout publicized by the Kingdom’s Foreign Ministry indicating that U.S. President Donald Trump held a phone call with the Crown Prince, during which the U.S. president condemned the missile attacks on the Kingdom and said the United States stands alongside Saudi Arabia, supporting measures it takes to confront what the statement described as Iranian violations undermining the region’s security and stability.
As the crisis unfolded, international actors issued calls for de-escalation and diplomacy even as regional governments positioned themselves in sharply opposing camps. For Albania, the moment marked a further escalation in its confrontation with Tehran, with Rama’s statements signaling both political support for Washington and an effort to deepen regional alignment by explicitly backing Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other Gulf partners under Iranian missile fire.
The post Albania Aligns With U.S. and Israel on Iran appeared first on Tirana Times.
