Albania accuses Greeks of interference"

The governing Socialist party in Albania has accused Greece of violating Albanian sovereignty by interfering in local elections held at the weekend.

The comments followed election-related incidents in the border town of Himare, which Greece says has an ethnic Greek majority.

The Albanian Socialist party has claimed an overwhelming victory in the town, although it says visiting Greek politicians had pressured citizens to vote for a Greek minority party.

But Athens said ethnic Greeks had been prevented from voting, including six-hundred Albanians employed in Greece who, it says, were barred from returning home to cast their votes. Elsewhere, the Socialists have won most seats, ending the domination of local councils in Albania by the opposition Democratic party.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service