Moscow condemned Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama’s statement calling for a union with Kosovo as the crown of his political career.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zaharova said that Rama’s statement is absolutely unacceptable, adding that the advocating of plans to create a Greater Albania runs counter to UN Security Council resolution 1244. Her written statement warned that this undermines the stability of the region.

Kosovo Online reported Rama as saying that uniting Kosovo and Albania is the goal of his political career. “President of Kosovo and Albania, no. Uniting Kosovo and Albania, yes,” he is reported to have told Pristina-based Klan Kosova TV.

According to Zaharova, ideas like that also run counter to the efforts invested by Belgrade and Tirana to create a single market as part of the Open Balkans initiative.

“We are counting on an adequate reaction from the Western sponsors of Kosovo’s statehood to this open provocation,” she said.