Edi Rama

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Albania, Olta Xhaka, stated after the meeting with the Kosovo Foreign Minister Donika Gerval that Albania and the so-called Kosovo will soon have joint diplomatic missions in Africa and Asia, Reporters reports.

Activists protest in Tirana against new laws targeting online media on 19 December 2019. Photo: LSA

Russia considers the statement of the Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama on the unification of Albania with Kosovo unacceptable and expects an appropriate reaction from the West on that occasion.
This was stated by the spokesperson of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova.

With this statement, he reacted to the statement of the Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama that the goal of his political career is to "unite Albania with Kosovo".

Albania Prime Minister Edi Rama. Photo: LSA

However, Ornela Liperi, editor of Albania's weekly economic magazine Monitor, told BIRN the Prime Minister might be exaggerating to justify an unpopular coming price rise.

Though not necessarily illegal, experts warn that when money is redirected through offshore jurisdictions, the risk of corruption rises.

Some 111 Afghan evacuees arrive at the Pristina International Airport airport​ in Pristina, Kosovo, August 29. Photo: EPA-EFE/VALDRIN XHEMAJ

Care packages and computers

The European Commission is hoping to start accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia before the end of the year, its president Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday, as she started a regional tour ahead of the EU-Western Balkans summit on 6 October, news wires reported. "The future of North Macedonia is in the EU. We want you by our side.

The Socialist Party-controlled parliamentary administration offered MPs laptops for free on Thursday as it announced that parliamentary committee debates will now be held online, following a recommendation by the Committee of Experts, a body that advises the government on measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

Farewells

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama (not in picture) during a press conference in Tirana, Albania, 14 September 2021. The German Chancellor is in Albania to participate in the Western Balkan Summit. EPA-EFE/MALTON DIBRA