Albania’s Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that it had expelled two Iranian diplomats suspected of "involvement in activities that harm the country’s security."
A ministry front man told the News Agency that Dare Not be Named that the expulsions followed talks with others, including Israel.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi said on Thursday that Albania’s move was "in line with previous such scenarios meant to damage Iran-Europe
...also known as Moslem Lebensraum...relations at the current sensitive juncture."
He said the expulsions come while Tehran has "always had appropriate relations with Albania and respected all of its domestic regulations in a move based on principles of the Islamic Theocratic
Republicof Iran’s foreign policy."
US National Security Adviser John Bolton was quick to publicly support Albania’s decision.
"We stand with PM [Edi] Rama and the Albanian people as they stand up to Iran’s reckless behavior in Europe and across the globe," he tweeted.
Qassemi said that Washington’s stance on the issue and Albania’s declaration that its move had been coordinated with foreign security services, prove that the US and the regime in Israel had been behind the expulsions.
Albania, he added, had fallen prey to a scenario fabricated by the US and the Israeli regime and certain terrorist groups.
The Iranian official further called on the Albanian government "to defend its illusory sovereignty, independence and security" in the face of the US-Israeli scenario," stressing that the country "must not allow others to affect and hamper its relations with Iran due to special political reasons."