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Albania, Greece Signal Readiness to Restart Maritime Talks Amid Lingering Tensions

Albania (Tirana Times) — June 5, 2025, Albania and Greece may be poised to revive negotiations over their long-disputed maritime border, a development that could mark a turning point in relations marred by legal battles, ethnic tensions, and political provocations. The possible reopening of talks was hinted at during a …

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Kosovo-Serbia dialogue: Its implications for bilateral relations and domestic affairs of Albania

This content is for members only. Visit the site and log in/register to read. The post Kosovo-Serbia dialogue: Its implications for bilateral relations and domestic affairs of Albania appeared first on Tirana Times. Original post Here

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Albania Legalizes Cannabis Amid Crime and State Capture Fears

Albanian police during an anti-cannabis operation. Photo: State Police. TIRANA, 4 June 2025 , (TT) — The Albanian government has approved the cultivation of cannabis for medical and industrial purposes, issuing licenses covering 29,000 hectares of land stretching from the north to the south of the country — a move …

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Makeover of Communist-Era Albanian Jail as Film Set Angers Survivors

The decision to use the former Spac labour camp to shoot a film – and repaint some of the buildings – has enraged former inmates and activists who say the works threaten to alter history. Original post Here

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‘I’m Both’: Film Explores Experience of ‘Generation B’ Albanians in Greece

In Albgreko, a short documentary, the children and grandchildren of Albanians immigrants in Greece speak of feeling both Albanian and Greek in ways that those who came in the 1990s never could. Original post Here

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Spectacle Over Substance: How Albania’s “War on Money Laundering” Ignores the Towers That Tell the Truth

At first glance, the Albanian government’s latest initiative to combat money laundering appears bold: an investigation into 400 luxury vehicles purchased by individuals with no declared income. Authorities have stated that if the owners fail to justify the source of funds used to purchase these high-end cars, the vehicles will …

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The Book “The Journey of the Najdi Boy” as a Literary Bridge Between Saudi Arabia and Albania – The First Saudi Novel in the Albanian Language

By Jerina Zaloshnja The Albanian edition of “The Journey of the Najdi Boy” (Tirana Times, 2025) appears to mark an important milestone in the cultural history between Saudi Arabia and Albania: it is the first work of Saudi literature to be translated into Albanian. This publication results from the collaboration …

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Albania-Italy Crime Nexus: Power, Profit, and Corruption

By | Tirana Times | May 29, 2025 ROME — Albanian criminal networks have entrenched themselves across Italy, forging strong alliances with the country’s most powerful mafia syndicates, according to a sweeping new report by Italy’s anti-mafia directorate (DIA), presented this week to the Italian parliament. The 424-page report—among the …

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Share Your Experience: Ukrainian Refugees’ Integration in the Balkans, Spain, Poland, Italy

Did you leave Ukraine after the full-scale invasion started in February 2022? Did you find refuge in one of the Balkan countries? Did you manage to integrate? Tell us your story. Original post Here

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Former President Meta Faces Corruption Charges in Politically Sensitive Case

TIRANA, Albania — Former Albanian President Ilir Meta and his former wife, current MP Monika Kryemadhi, have been formally indicted by Albania’s Special Anti-Corruption Structure (SPAK) on charges of corruption, money laundering, and concealment of assets—marking one of the most politically explosive cases since the country’s post-communist transition. Meta, a …

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Tirana Marks International Arabic Language Day with a Festive Ceremony

Tirana, Tirana Times, 19 December 2025 – International Arabic Language Day was commemorated in Tirana through a festive ceremony organized by the Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the Republic of Albania, bringing together a broad representation of Albanian state institutions, the diplomatic corps, universities, the academic community, cultural …

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Albanian MPs Clash in Parliament Amid Tensions Over Corruption Cases

Opposition MPs hurled bottles and clashed with guards as the new ruling party-backed Ombudsman took his oath amid heightened tensions sparked by high-level graft cases. Original post Here

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Visiting Thaci in Hague Jail, Albania PM Slates ’Shameful’ War Court

Albania’s Edi Rama lashed out at the Hague-based Specialist Chambers war crimes court following a visit to Kosovo’s ex-President Hashim Thaci in detention, calling it a ‘theatre of shame’. Original post Here

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Stability Has a Schedule: What NATO’s Hague Pledge Means for the Western Balkans

In late August 2022, Montenegro’s government digital infrastructure was hit by what officials called an “unprecedented” cyberattack. The disruption was serious enough that parts of the public sector had to fall back on manual workarounds while authorities tried to isolate affected systems. In a region where state capacity is often …

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Albania in 2025: Socialists Win Big, Graft Probes Continue

Prime Minister Edi Rama secured a historic fourth term in office and consolidated his rule against a background of ongoing corruption investigations into several politicians from the governing Socialist Party. Original post Here

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Kremlin Echoes in Balkan Clickbait: How Fake Baba Vanga Prophecies Spread Across Albanian Media

TIRANA, Tirana Times, December 16, 2025. Each December, apocalyptic headlines resurface across Albanian media warning of global collapse, Europe’s disappearance or the rise of Russian President Vladimir Putin as a world ruler, all attributed to the supposed prophecies of Baba Vanga, a blind Bulgarian mystic who died nearly three decades ago. …

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Serbia Loses Kushner Investment, Vučić Points to Albania

Albania’s Sazan Island project backed by Trump’s son-in-law draws scrutiny over transparency and political motives BELGRADE, Serbia, Tirana Times –  Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said Serbia has suffered a major economic setback after a company owned by Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump, withdrew from a planned Trump-branded …

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Bringing Albania into History: Bernd J. Fischer and World War II

By Ilir Ikonomi One of the most important modern works ever written about Albania’s experience in the Second World War—Bernd Jürgen Fischer’s Albania at War, 1939–1945. This is not just a history book. It is an act of historical rescue. Fischer lifts Albania from the shadows of European historiography and places …

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AKSHI Director Arrested in Major Corruption Probe

Case Involving Critical State Infrastructure Adds to Albania’s Growing High Level Corruption Crisis Tirana Times – December 16, 2025 Albania’s Special Anti-Corruption Structure, SPAK, in cooperation with the National Bureau of Investigation, BKH, has carried out a large-scale operation targeting an alleged criminal network operating at the highest levels of the …

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Albanian Prosecution Urges Parliament to Allow Deputy PM’s Arrest

Special Prosecution Against Corruption and Organised Crime asks parliament to lift the immunity from arrest of Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku. Original post Here

News

Tirana Marks International Arabic Language Day with a Festive Ceremony

Tirana, Tirana Times, 19 December 2025 – International Arabic Language Day was commemorated in Tirana through a festive ceremony organized by the Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the Republic of Albania, bringing together a broad representation of Albanian state institutions, the diplomatic corps, universities, the academic community, cultural …

News

Albanian MPs Clash in Parliament Amid Tensions Over Corruption Cases

Opposition MPs hurled bottles and clashed with guards as the new ruling party-backed Ombudsman took his oath amid heightened tensions sparked by high-level graft cases. Original post Here

News

Visiting Thaci in Hague Jail, Albania PM Slates ’Shameful’ War Court

Albania’s Edi Rama lashed out at the Hague-based Specialist Chambers war crimes court following a visit to Kosovo’s ex-President Hashim Thaci in detention, calling it a ‘theatre of shame’. Original post Here

News

Stability Has a Schedule: What NATO’s Hague Pledge Means for the Western Balkans

In late August 2022, Montenegro’s government digital infrastructure was hit by what officials called an “unprecedented” cyberattack. The disruption was serious enough that parts of the public sector had to fall back on manual workarounds while authorities tried to isolate affected systems. In a region where state capacity is often …

News

Albania in 2025: Socialists Win Big, Graft Probes Continue

Prime Minister Edi Rama secured a historic fourth term in office and consolidated his rule against a background of ongoing corruption investigations into several politicians from the governing Socialist Party. Original post Here

News

Kremlin Echoes in Balkan Clickbait: How Fake Baba Vanga Prophecies Spread Across Albanian Media

TIRANA, Tirana Times, December 16, 2025. Each December, apocalyptic headlines resurface across Albanian media warning of global collapse, Europe’s disappearance or the rise of Russian President Vladimir Putin as a world ruler, all attributed to the supposed prophecies of Baba Vanga, a blind Bulgarian mystic who died nearly three decades ago. …

News

Serbia Loses Kushner Investment, Vučić Points to Albania

Albania’s Sazan Island project backed by Trump’s son-in-law draws scrutiny over transparency and political motives BELGRADE, Serbia, Tirana Times –  Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said Serbia has suffered a major economic setback after a company owned by Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump, withdrew from a planned Trump-branded …

News

Bringing Albania into History: Bernd J. Fischer and World War II

By Ilir Ikonomi One of the most important modern works ever written about Albania’s experience in the Second World War—Bernd Jürgen Fischer’s Albania at War, 1939–1945. This is not just a history book. It is an act of historical rescue. Fischer lifts Albania from the shadows of European historiography and places …

News

AKSHI Director Arrested in Major Corruption Probe

Case Involving Critical State Infrastructure Adds to Albania’s Growing High Level Corruption Crisis Tirana Times – December 16, 2025 Albania’s Special Anti-Corruption Structure, SPAK, in cooperation with the National Bureau of Investigation, BKH, has carried out a large-scale operation targeting an alleged criminal network operating at the highest levels of the …

News

Albanian Prosecution Urges Parliament to Allow Deputy PM’s Arrest

Special Prosecution Against Corruption and Organised Crime asks parliament to lift the immunity from arrest of Deputy Prime Minister Belinda Balluku. Original post Here