lbania [æl'be?ni?] (help·info), officially the Republic of Albania (Albanian: Republika e Shqipërisë pronounced [??'publika ? ?cip?'?i?s], or simply Shqipëria, Gheg Albanian: Shqipnija), is a country in South Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Greece to the south-east, Montenegro to the north, the disputed territory of Kosovo to the northeast, and the Republic of Macedonia to the east. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the west, and on the Ionian Sea to the southwest. It is less than 72 km (45 miles) from Italy, across the Strait of Otranto which links the Adriatic Sea to the Ionian Sea.