The Republic of Albania is a country in South Eastern Europe that is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo[1] to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the west, and on the Ionian Sea to the southwest. Albania is less than 72 km (45 mi) from Italy, across the Strait of Otranto which links the Adriatic Sea to the Ionian Sea.

Albania is a parliamentary democracy and a transition economy. The Albanian capital, Tirana, is home to approximately 600,000 of the country's 3,000,000 people.