On 5 October 2018, Frontex and Albania signed a cooperation agreement on border management to tackle irregular migration. Under the agreement, Frontex will coordinate operational cooperation between EU Member States and Albania on the management of the EU’s external borders. It will also carry out deployments and joint operations on Albanian territory subject to the agreement. For each operation, a plan must be agreed on between the parties.

The agreement is the first in a planned series of agreements with countries neighbouring the EU.