Latest Albania News
Albania aims to join the European Union by 2030, prime minister tells expatriates in Greek city
THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP) — Albania hopes to join the European Union by 2030, Prime Minister Edi Rama told a crowd of some 2,000 supporters at a hotel in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki on Sunday. Rama also promised that the numerous Albanian expatriates will be able for...
Albania's opposition blocks roads in a protest to demand a caretaker Cabinet
TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Albanian opposition activists blocked major roads for several hours Tuesday in a nationwide rally demanding that the government be replaced by a technocratic caretaker Cabinet before the 2025 parliamentary election. Lawmakers led hundreds of opposition...
Albania stops a ship suspected of harboring massive amounts of toxic waste from docking
TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Albania prevented Monday a ship suspected of transferring a huge amount of hazardous waste from docking at Tirana’s main port, officials said, after a watchdog group alerted authorities. The Turkish-flagged Moliva XA443A ship was kept about a mile away from...
EU stays on the sidelines over migrant deal between Italy and Albania
TIRANA, Albania (AP) — A top European Union official on Wednesday refused to be drawn on an opinion of an agreement between Italy and Albania to process some migrants in centers set up in the tiny Western Balkan country, saying only that it was being closely monitored. European...
European Commission chief assures Western Balkans of the bloc's enlargement progress
TIRANA, Albania (AP) — European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen began a tour of the Western Balkan countries on Wednesday, assuring them that the enlargement of the trade bloc remained one of its priorities. The Western Balkans countrie s — Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo,...
Albania's left-wing former President Meta is arrested on corruption allegations
TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Albanian prosecutors on Monday arrested former President Ilir Meta on suspicion that the left-wing Freedom Party leader engaged in alleged corruption, money laundering and hiding of personal income and property. A lawyer for Meta, who was president from...
The first migrants sent to Albania for processing return to Italy
SHENGJIN, Albania (AP) — An Italian navy ship on Saturday took back to Italy the first 12 migrants from newly opened asylum processing centers in Albania following a contentious court decision in Rome. The ship arrived in the southern port of Bari on Saturday afternoon and the...
A court in Italy rejects the outsourced detention of the first migrants sent to Albania
ROME (AP) — A court in Italy on Friday ruled against the right-wing government’s move to detain 12 migrants at newly opened centers in Albania, highlighting a key hurdle in the administration’s plan to outsource some of its migrant processing to the Balkan country. The 12...
Italian ship transfers 16 intercepted migrants to Albania in a first under their new migration plan
SHENGJIN, Albania (AP) — An Italian navy ship on Wednesday docked at the Albanian port of Shengjin to bring the first group of 16 migrants intercepted in international waters to be processed there. The naval ship Libra left the port of Lampedusa on Monday with 16 men — 10 from...
Albania says only Italy is allowed to operate migrant asylum centers in the country
TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Albania's prime minister on Tuesday said his government had turned down many requests from other European Union countries to take in thousands of asylum-seekers but made an exception for Italy. An Italian navy ship was expected to dock at the Albanian port...
