Tag: Edi Rama
Democracy & Human Rights
The empty seat in Strasbourg
When the newly elected European Parliament convenes this year on July 16 there will be an empty seat in the plenary hall within the...
Op-Eds & Guest Contributors
Playing politics with EU veto power – a very old game
In late November, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, standing alongside visiting Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, told the media that he was against the “bilateralization”...
Zero Tolerance
Zelensky Athens visit eclipses Mitsotakis’ informal Western Balkans Summit
Receiving a full house of Western Balkan leaders, as well as several EU luminaries, in Athens on an evening when much of northern Greece...
Op-Eds & Guest Contributors
The Beleri case as bellwether for democracy in Albania
The standard definition of a political prisoner is: “One imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for...
Albania
Iranians hold rallies to protest police raid on opposition’s Albania-based HQ
Protests were held outside Albanian embassies and consulates in at least ten cities on June 20th and 21st following a raid by police on...
Albania
EU Tirana Summit: Enlargement must go on
The summit's generic one size fits all “membership perspective” statement was seen as good news by most after the topic of EU Enlargement had become a highly controversial subject.
Refugees & Migration
Unexpected migration woes
Brussels has, in the case of the migrant problem, proven that the EU's feckless bureaucrats are persuasive only when they carry a big stick against those that openly mock them.
Op-Eds & Guest Contributors
Interventionist US Ambassador in Tirana under pressure
"I can assure you that the President of the United States Joe Biden, the Secretary of the United States Tony Blinken and I all...
Albania
After Macron victory, Enlargement diplomacy back on the radar
With the war in Ukraine and the noise surrounding the French presidential elections, the subject of EU Enlargement into the Western Balkans had almost...
Albania
Amateur hour for US diplomacy in Albania
On December 11, Sali Berisha, a two-term Prime Minister and President of Albania, was addressing some ten thousand jubilant Democratic Party congress participants in...
Albania
Three major challenges in the Albanian parliament, especially for the opposition
The three major challenges at the beginning of Albania's current parliamentary legislature include the review of the municipal territorial division and the structure of...
Albania
Kosovo-Serbia tensions fading after deal reached
The slow-motion crisis between Kosovo and Serbia over automobile license plates that began with little notice on September 20 escalated into a tense show...
Afghanistan
US Balkan allies to host Afghan refugee processing operations
Even before the Taliban had completed its occupation of Kabul, American allies Albania and Kosovo told Washington that they would serve as transit countries...
Albania
EU enlargement: Cui bono?
EU enlargement: cui bono? Several Foreign Ministers from EU countries visited Tirana and the North Macedonian capital Skopje in the last weeks to meet local...
Albania
Washington designates corrupt former Albanian officials
On May 19, the US Department of State announced the designation of former Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha and his family members for involvement...
Albania
Why is the Rama government going soft on Hamas?
To date, the violations of the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) debated in Tirana and Brussels were related to business issues. The SAA, the...
Albania
Learning from past mistakes and moving ahead in the wake of the Albanian elections
In the first days of this week after the election results were announced, I conducted a computer exercise, dividing the result of each subject...
Albania
Slovenia provokes with non-paper supporting Balkan partitions
A non-paper purported to be of Slovenian authorship has drawn increasing attention over the last weeks that it has been circulating because it appears...
Albania
An advocacy for giving precedence to the EU’s Copenhagen Criteria in the Western Balkans
Among the precious little remaining friends of a quick EU enlargement towards the Western Balkans, the threat of non-friendly powers encroaching in the region...
Albania
Twitter banned me, too
It’s been two weeks since my Twitter account was blocked by Twitter itself. Perhaps it is of interest to explain how it exactly happened....
Albania
Out in the cold: SE Europe in dire need of vaccine supplies
With the COVID-19 pandemic steadily worsening across much of Europe, the citizens of the continent’s Southeast European region have been left out of much...
Albania
Albania’s Rama cautiously balancing between Erdogan and Mitsotakis
Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara on January 7, and made a hastily arranged “private” stop,...
Albania
The Hague to assist Albania and Greece resolve maritime border
In an ironic twist of historical events, Albania and Greece jointly announced October 20 that they were requesting assistance from the International Court of...
Albania
Varhelyi refocuses on enlargement for Southeast Europe
EU Commissioner for Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi visited North Macedonia and Albania on October 6-7, meeting leaders in both countries as well as addressing parliaments....
Albania
Short Greece vacation for two Balkan leaders
Taking the opportunity to visit Athens in conference speaker mode, the leaders of Albania and North Macedonia paid stealthy visits to Athens September 15-16...
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