Signal Albania becomes 73rd country to sign the Artemis Accords

Summary

Albania signed the Artemis Accords on September 21, 2026, at a ceremony held at NASA Headquarters in Washington, becoming the 73rd country to join the framework. NASA Deputy Administrator Matt Anderson hosted the event, joined by Albania's Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Ferit Hoxha and Ambassador Ervin Bushati, along with U.S. State Department officials. The Artemis Accords were established in 2020 by the United States and seven founding nations to set common principles for civil space exploration. Core principles include peaceful use, transparency, emergency assistance to astronauts, registration of space objects, sharing of scientific data, protection of historic sites, and mitigation of orbital debris. The signing extends the accords' reach into the Balkans.