Jordan’s King Abdullah II Makes Rare Visit to Albania Amid Sparse Bilateral Ties
President Begaj welcomes His Majesty Abdullah II bin Al Hussein, King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, with a solemn ceremony. May 2, 2025 | TIRANA, Albania Tirana Times In a visit marked more by symbolism than substance, Jordan’s King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein arrived in Tirana on Friday for …
Saudi Cultural Heritage Celebrated in Prishtina with Opening of “Urat” Exhibition
Tirana Times | May 2nd | Prishtina, Kosovo — A unique cultural bridge between Kosovo and Saudi Arabia was inaugurated on Thursday with the opening of the “Urat” exhibition in central Prishtina, showcasing the Kingdom’s rich Islamic and cultural heritage. Organized in partnership between the Islamic Community of Kosovo and …
Criminal Enterprise and Investment Policy in Albania
The involvement of individuals with criminal backgrounds or ties to the underworld among Albania’s so-called strategic investors must be examined in a broader context. Politically, this phenomenon represents one of the clearest signs of the symbiosis between crime and politics — and of the state being effectively captured by organized …
RSF Report: Media Freedom Tumbling in Most Balkan Countries
Press freedom has continued a downward slide in most Balkan countries according to the latest report by Reporters Without Borders – although Albania, Montenegro and Serbia have bucked the trend. Original post Here
The EU Court’s Verdict on Golden Passports: Implications for Albania
Genc Pollo – President of the Paneuropa Albania MovementFormer Minister and MP April 2025 “Whatever the European Court decides—if it says it can’t be done, we won’t do it; if it says it can, we will.” This was, roughly speaking, Prime Minister Edi Rama’s stance in March 2023, expressed at …
Corridor VIII – the Forgotten Lifeline of the Balkans
An in-depth investigation into the EU-backed trans-Balkan transport project that remains stalled decades after its launch. Over two decades ago, European planners and Balkan leaders laid out the idea off Corridor VIII, a transport route that would traverse and link the difficult-to-navigate terrains of Albania, North Macedonia, and Bulgaria. Its …
Italy Queried Over Fate of 16 ‘Missing’ Migrants Outsourced to Albania
Opposition MP demands answers after a visit to the Italian-run Repatriation and Detention Centre in Albania revealed that 16 out of 41 migrants sent there two weeks ago had gone. Original post Here
Surveillance and Censorship Worsening in Western Balkans: BIRN Report
New report shows governments in the region increasingly use technology to suppress dissent, filter content, restrict access to digital platforms and carry out mass and targeted surveillance. Original post Here
In a depopulating Albania, why is the PM campaigning on a promise to make it easier for young people to leave?
If Rama wants to be the prime minister who ushers Albania into the European Union, he must first be the leader who makes Albania worth staying in. It means building a country where the EU passport is a gateway — not an escape route. Because freedom is not just the …
Call to Arms for the ‘Next Generation’
Albania is in a precarious situation at the moment. We are faced with a prevailing cultural acceptance of complacency and corruption. This reality had periodically made itself known to me during my summer trips back to Albania. Truthfully, however, this had no bearing on my life back then. I was …
TIRANA, Albania (Tirana Times) November 11, 2025. The criminal charges filed against Deputy Prime Minister and Infrastructure Minister Belinda Balluku over the Llogara Tunnel project have pushed Albania’s flagship justice reform into uncharted territory, bringing prosecutors closer than ever to the core of Prime Minister Edi Rama’s government. The Special …
Albania’s smaller parties believe the country’s two main political forces unexpectedly agreed to work together on electoral reform in order to fix the system to maintain their dominance. Original post Here
The Western Balkan countries remain important corridors in Europe for drug and human trafficking and migrant smuggling, says the 2025 Organised Crime Index, produced by an anti-graft NGO. Original post Here
Catch up on the weekend’s most important developments with Balkan Insight’s digest of news from countries across the region. Original post Here
Tirana Times sat with the Head of the Taipei Representative office in Italy, Ambassador Vincent Tsao on his recent visit to Albania to talk about cooperation and exchange in technology, development, education and more… Your Excellency, Taiwan is known globally for its advanced technology and innovation sectors. What specific areas …
Online disinformation from opponents of the new gender equality law shouldn’t obscure the real issue: this vital legislation has been adopted by parliament, but now we need it to work in practice, not just on paper. Original post Here
Women’s rights groups hailed adoption of the new equality law as a historic move – while the opposition Democratic Party and ‘pro-family’ groups called it an attack on traditional values. Original post Here
A leaked file, apparently from an anti-corruption prosecutors’ probe, suggests deputy prime minister Belinda Balluku played an active role in predetermining the winner of a major construction tender. Original post Here
Tirana Times | November 5, 2025 Berlin/Tirana – Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama has downplayed growing Western fears of a possible Russian expansion of aggression in Europe, declaring that Moscow would “not attack Albania or any other European country” and that NATO remains fully capable of deterring any threat. In …
By Tirana Times November 5, 2025 Albania’s draft budget for 2026 marks a significant milestone in the country’s defense modernization and strategic alignment with NATO objectives. The government has announced a €100 million increase in defense funding, raising total expenditures to €589 million or approximately 2.1% of GDP surpassing the …