Overview of Italian Government’s Stance on Albania’s Withdrawal from Warsaw Treaty de Facto in 1961 and de Jure in 1968

This article tries to analyze Italian government’s stance after Albania’s de facto withdrawal from the Warsaw Treaty in 1961 and de jure denunciation of this treaty in 1968. The retreat of Soviet troops from Vlora Naval Base had a considerable impact on Italy’s foreign relations with Albania in many regards. Concerning internal interests, Italy had a close relationship with Albania and had always demonstrated the willingness to enhance her influence in this respect. On the other hand, for Italy being a NATO member country, Albania’s withdrawal from the Warsaw Treaty was an enormous relief. The possibility that the two superpowers clash on the Adriatic Sea was considerably minimized. This led to a genuine interest in Albania. Albanian political immigrants in Italy played a major role in enhancing this attention. Nevertheless, because of the communist regime in Albania, the rapprochement wanted by Italy remained merely a desire which did not exceed bilateral economic relations. Viewed as an opportunity for Albania to open up to the West, this effort constitutes another chance deliberately “missed” by the regime at home.