Albania's Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian ambassador in Tirana on 28 May over Moscow's threats of further strikes on Ukraine and its order for foreign diplomats to leave Kyiv, Foreign Minister Ferit Hoxha wrote on X. It was Albania's second summons of the envoy in days, following Russia's massive 24 May attack on Kyiv that damaged the residence of Albania's ambassador to Ukraine.
Russia's foreign ministry urged all foreign citizens and diplomatic personnel to leave Kyiv on 25 May, announcing "systematic strikes" on Ukrainian "decision-making centers" and defense facilities.
Hoxha called the threat a violation of international law and the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations; he is one of several European foreign ministers to summon Russian envoys over the warning.
"We will not be intimidated"
Threatening embassies is not diplomacy; it is intimidation," Hoxha said.
Russia, he added, for more than four years since its full-scale war, has relentlessly targeted energy infrastructure, schools, hospitals, and homes across Ukraine.
"Yet it has failed to break the courage, determination, resilience, and strength of the Ukrainian people," the Albanian foreign ministry stated.
Albania would not withdraw and would remain in Kyiv, and the only way forward was to end the war and engage in "genuine, good-faith negotiations for peace." The position, he noted, had been conveyed directly to the Russian ambassador in Tirana.
Earlier, the residence of Albania’s ambassador to Ukraine, Ernal Filo, was damaged as a result of a Russian attack on Kyiv. Following the incident, the Albanian government summoned the Russian diplomat to provide explanations.
Separately, Hoxha strongly condemned Russia’s large-scale strike on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure on May 24.
According to him, a residential complex in Kyiv where the Albanian ambassador lives was hit during the attack, putting the diplomat’s safety at risk.
Albania’s foreign minister called on Russia to stop striking Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure and to end the war. Afterward, Russia stated that foreign diplomats should leave Kyiv ahead of possible further attacks.
Right after this move, Moscow issued a warning on further attacks and the need for foreign diplomats to leave the Ukrainian capital.
