Albania

Nuclear-weapon endorser

Has not yet joined the TPNW

Status

Albania has not yet signed or ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

 

National position

Albania has consistently voted against an annual UN General Assembly resolution since 2018 that welcomes the adoption of the TPNW and calls upon all states to sign, ratify, or accede to it “at the earliest possible date”.

Albania supports the retention and potential use of nuclear weapons on its behalf, as indicated by its endorsement of various alliance statements of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), of which it is a member.

 

Political developments

Albania’s capital, Tirana, declared its support for the TPNW in 2024. “The city of Tirana is committed to joining cities around the world that are taking the lead in the fight to end nuclear weapons,” its mayor said, noting the strong public support in Albania for the TPNW.

In 2020, the former Albanian president Rexhep Meidani and former prime ministers Ylli Bufi and Fatos Nano signed an open letter calling on current leaders to “show courage and boldness – and join the [TPNW]”.

 

Public opinion

In 2022, an opinion poll commissioned by Pathways to Peace and carried out by the research firm IDRA found that 98 per cent of Albanians want their country to join the TPNW, with 90 per cent believing that Albania should be among the first NATO members to do so. 

 

TPNW negotiations

Albania did not participate in the negotiation of the TPNW at the United Nations in New York in 2017 and thus did not vote on its adoption. On the opening day of the negotiating conference, it joined the United States and several other states in protesting the treaty-making process.

In 2016, Albania voted in favour of the UN General Assembly resolution that established the formal mandate for states to commence negotiations on “a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading towards their total elimination”. However, it subsequently informed the UN secretariat that it had intended to vote against the resolution.

In a document sent to NATO members ahead of the vote, the United States “strongly encourage[d]” members, including Albania, to vote against the resolution, “not to merely abstain”. In addition, it said that, if the treaty negotiations do commence, allies and partners should “refrain from joining them”.

 

Further information

Nuclear Weapons Ban Monitor

Nuclear-weapon endorser

Has not yet joined the TPNW

[HIGHLIGHTS]

Status

Albania has not yet signed or ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

 

National position

Albania has consistently voted against an annual UN General Assembly resolution since 2018 that welcomes the adoption of the TPNW and calls upon all states to sign, ratify, or accede to it “at the earliest possible date”.

Albania supports the retention and potential use of nuclear weapons on its behalf, as indicated by its endorsement of various alliance statements of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), of which it is a member.

 

Political developments

Albania’s capital, Tirana, declared its support for the TPNW in 2024. “The city of Tirana is committed to joining cities around the world that are taking the lead in the fight to end nuclear weapons,” its mayor said, noting the strong public support in Albania for the TPNW.

In 2020, the former Albanian president Rexhep Meidani and former prime ministers Ylli Bufi and Fatos Nano signed an open letter calling on current leaders to “show courage and boldness – and join the [TPNW]”.

 

Public opinion

In 2022, an opinion poll commissioned by Pathways to Peace and carried out by the research firm IDRA found that 98 per cent of Albanians want their country to join the TPNW, with 90 per cent believing that Albania should be among the first NATO members to do so. 

 

TPNW negotiations

Albania did not participate in the negotiation of the TPNW at the United Nations in New York in 2017 and thus did not vote on its adoption. On the opening day of the negotiating conference, it joined the United States and several other states in protesting the treaty-making process.

In 2016, Albania voted in favour of the UN General Assembly resolution that established the formal mandate for states to commence negotiations on “a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading towards their total elimination”. However, it subsequently informed the UN secretariat that it had intended to vote against the resolution.

In a document sent to NATO members ahead of the vote, the United States “strongly encourage[d]” members, including Albania, to vote against the resolution, “not to merely abstain”. In addition, it said that, if the treaty negotiations do commence, allies and partners should “refrain from joining them”.

 

Further information

Nuclear Weapons Ban Monitor

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