Albania grants Taiwan visa free privilege

Albania has signed a visa-waiver agreement with Taiwan, becoming the 115th country to do so, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) announced Friday in a press statement.

Effective immediately, Taiwanese passport holders visiting the European country for less than 90 days will not need apply for tourist visas, making travel more convenient for the local population, said MOFA spokesman James Chang. Asked how many Taiwanese people actually visited Albania last year, Chang said only: “Not many.”
Albania is the 115th country or territory to grant visa-free access or landing visa privileges to Taiwanese citizens, according to MOFA.

According to Chang, the agreement is significant for Taiwan because Albania used to have a “very close relationship” with China. Albania has proposed several times to exclude Taiwan from the United Nations and has maintained a friendly relationship with China for a long time.

Taiwan lost its U.N. membership in 1971 and has since been unsuccessful in its attempts to rejoin the international body.