Albanian PM warns violent protest could threaten country’s path to joining European Union

Rama frames protests as a wider threat

In a live Facebook address, Rama said the protests challenged Albania’s direction, not his government, its parliamentary majority or the party that won the elections. He has governed since 2013 and won a fourth term last year.

The unrest came after months of largely peaceful summer protests against a luxury coastal development backed by Jared Kushner. As Rama spoke, excavators removed paving outside his office in central Tirana ahead of an expected new round of demonstrations.

Albania’s EU membership goal

Rama said his government was confronting corruption more forcefully than before. Albania and Montenegro are currently leading the Balkan countries seeking EU membership, and Albania is aiming to enter by 2030. Rama blamed unspecified foreign interests for the protests and for what he described as an attempted drone attack at his office that week. He said he did not believe young people, students or minors would carry out such a plan, calling it “a foreign hand.”

Unrest also reported elsewhere

In France, demonstrations over rising living costs and declining public services were followed by rioting in cities on Saturday. Hundreds of thousands joined peaceful marches, while violent groups targeted public buildings, looted shops and supermarkets, and attacked police vehicles and officers.

In Portugal, tens of thousands demonstrated in Lisbon after days of unrest, protesting housing and other living costs. Housing prices there have doubled since 2017, contributing to one of Europe’s worst affordability crises.