Dai blocchi studenteschi e universitari che scuotono le città francesi fino agli scontri di Milano, dove nuclei di giovanissimi casseurs hanno trasformato i cortei in guerriglia urbana, le piazze dell’Europa occidentale mostrano il volto di una rabbia generazionale aspra ma disarticolata. È la reazione febbrile di una gioventù che esprime malessere e disillusione ai margini di democrazie mature, senza tuttavia metterne in discussione l’architettura costituzionale di fondo.

Guardare alle manifestazioni che in questi stessi giorni infiammano Tirana come a una replica balcanica di quel disordine significherebbe, invece, commettere un errore di prospettiva capitale. Davanti ai palazzi governativi albanesi non agiscono frange metropolitane in cerca di scontro fine a sé stesso. Quella che ha preso il nome di “Rivoluzione dei fenicotteri” è una mobilitazione politica matura che salda studenti, mondo accademico e società civile contro la cattura dello Stato: la ribellione contro le leggi ad hoc concepite per grandi interessi speculativi e contro un modello di potere che ha svuotato la democrazia per vendere all’estero l’illusione dell’ordine.

Per i partner europei e atlantici, l’Albania ha rappresentato a lungo un ancoraggio rassicurante nei Balcani occidentali. In una regione segnata dalle frizioni tra Belgrado e Pristina, dalla fragilità istituzionale della Bosnia-Erzegovina e dalla crescente concorrenza geopolitica di attori terzi, Tirana ha offerto un profilo apparentemente lineare: una popolazione dichiaratamente filoccidentale, un allineamento stabile alla Nato e un esecutivo capace di parlare il linguaggio della governance internazionale. 

Questa convergenza ha prodotto un’intesa pragmatica e marcatamente transazionale tra Tirana e le capitali occidentali. Il primo ministro Edi Rama ha compreso che, sotto la pressione di crisi interne ed esterne, gran parte dei partner europei tende a privilegiare la prevedibilità regionale rispetto alla qualità dello Stato di diritto. Posizionando l’Albania come spazio affidabile di cooperazione – dall’accoglienza dei rifugiati afghani nel 2021 al protocollo con l’Italia per la gestione extraterritoriale dei flussi migratori – l’esecutivo ha accumulato capitale diplomatico all’estero. Tale legittimazione internazionale si è trasformata, però, in una cambiale in bianco per Rama, spingendo le cancellerie occidentali a chiudere gli occhi sull’erosione dei contrappesi istituzionali e sulla gestione verticistica del potere.

Le radici istituzionali di questo schema affondano nelle patologie non risolte della transizione post-comunista. Il crollo del regime autarchico ed eremita di Enver Hoxha nel 1991 non ha prodotto una democrazia liberale consolidata, bensì un duopolio feroce tra il Partito democratico e il Partito socialista. Al di là delle opposte retoriche ideologiche, entrambe le formazioni sono rimaste a lungo prigioniere della medesima cultura del potere ereditata dal passato: una gestione personalistica e clientelare dello Stato, in cui la vittoria elettorale coincideva con l’occupazione dell’amministrazione pubblica e la delegittimazione sistematica dell’avversario. 

Dopo il trauma del 1997, quando l’implosione degli schemi piramidali trascinò il Paese nel caos armato e rese necessaria la missione internazionale Alba, nelle cancellerie occidentali si consolidò un tacito pragmatismo: la priorità assoluta andava all’ordine pubblico e alla stabilità del fianco adriatico, anche a costo di tollerare istituzioni deboli e una democrazia incompiuta. La capacità di garantire il controllo delle frontiere e la sicurezza regionale divenne il metro principale con cui valutare l’affidabilità dei governi albanesi, subordinando la profondità dello Stato di diritto alla prevenzione di nuove crisi. 

Negli ultimi anni, questa impostazione si è tradotta in un sistema di gestione politica ed economica fortemente accentrato. Al di fuori dei confini albanesi, i grandi progetti di rigenerazione urbana, gli investimenti esteri di alto profilo e una crescita esponenziale del turismo hanno alimentato una narrazione di modernizzazione e successo internazionale. Al tempo stesso, il ricorso sistematico ai partenariati pubblico-privato e allo status di “investitore strategico” ha sollevato interrogativi sulla concorrenza, sulla trasparenza delle procedure e sulla concentrazione di vantaggi economici in pochi gruppi vicini al potere. Le aree costiere e i settori urbani più redditizi sono diventati il terreno privilegiato di questa tensione tra sviluppo, speculazione e tutela dell’interesse pubblico. 

I limiti di questo modello di sviluppo sono emersi con particolare evidenza nella mobilitazione nata attorno all’ecosistema di Vjosa-Narta e ai progetti di sviluppo previsti nell’area di Saseno e Zvërnec. Per aprire la strada al mega-progetto turistico di Affinity Partners, la società legata a Jared Kushner, sono state varate modifiche legislative su misura che hanno subordinato la salvaguardia dell’area a interessi privati, ignorando le tutele ambientali e gli obblighi internazionali assunti dall’Albania in materia ambientale e paesaggistica.

La reazione dell’opinione pubblica albanese, aggregatasi sotto il simbolo del fenicottero rosa della laguna di Narta, è andata ben presto oltre le specifiche istanze di natura ambientalista. Portando in piazza residenti, attivisti, professionisti e studenti, la protesta è riuscita in pochi mesi a canalizzare un malcontento ben più ampio: la denuncia della cattura dello Stato, delle leggi su misura, dell’opacità procedurale e della sensazione che le decisioni strategiche vengano assunte al di fuori del contraddittorio pubblico. Quando gli studenti hanno innestato la propria mobilitazione su quella dei movimenti ambientalisti, chiedendo riforme nel sistema educativo e le dimissioni del governo, la contestazione ha assunto una dimensione chiaramente politica. 

Il quadro politico albanese riflette la medesima tensione. La riforma della giustizia avviata nel 2016, con il sostegno di Stati Uniti e Unione europea, ha introdotto il vetting dei magistrati e creato la Struttura speciale anticorruzione (Spak), producendo risultati rilevanti nella lotta a reti clientelari e a fenomeni di corruzione di alto livello. Tuttavia, gli organi indipendenti si muovono dentro un ecosistema di potere che resiste allo scrutinio. Il vero banco di prova per la magistratura non sono più soltanto le vecchie oligarchie dell’opposizione, ma i vertici operativi dello stesso governo Rama: le inchieste della Spak che, negli ultimi mesi, hanno incriminato l’ex vicepremier e ministra delle Infrastrutture Belinda Balluku per la gestione clientelare dei grandi appalti, insieme allo scandalo senza precedenti che ha decapitato i Servizi di Sicurezza albanesi con l’incriminazione della sua direttrice Vlora Hyseni per rivelazione di segreti di Stato, dimostrano che la corruzione non è una deviazione periferica, ma un tratto strutturale della macchina pubblica. Quando le indagini toccano esponenti politici vicini al potere, l’esecutivo fatica a mantenere la consueta narrazione tecnocratica e reagisce arroccandosi nella difesa della propria continuità a ogni costo.

A rafforzare questo squilibrio ha contribuito la prolungata fragilità dell’opposizione parlamentare. Il Partito democratico, intrappolato nella figura di Sali Berisha – isolato sul piano internazionale anche a seguito delle misure adottate dal Dipartimento di Stato statunitense – non è riuscito a costruire un’alternativa credibile e coesa. Questa debolezza ha ridotto la capacità del Parlamento di esercitare un controllo effettivo sull’esecutivo, spostando la conflittualità politica fuori dal Palazzo: verso i movimenti civici, le associazioni professionali, le università e le piazze. 

Esiste anche una dimensione ulteriore, di natura demografica e sociale. L’emigrazione di massa ha privato l’Albania di una parte consistente di forza lavoro qualificata, professionisti e giovani generazioni. Per decenni, l’esodo ha funzionato anche come valvola di sfogo politico: chi poteva partire ha spesso scelto di farlo, trasferendo altrove aspirazioni, competenze e capacità critica. Oggi, però, l’erosione della classe media urbana, la pressione dell’inflazione e l’escalation dei costi immobiliari rendono meno sostenibile questa dinamica. La protesta indica che anche l’assenza, la rassegnazione e l’emigrazione non possono più essere considerate ammortizzatori sociali indefiniti. 

Per i partner occidentali, e in primo luogo per l’Italia – storicamente legata a Tirana da vincoli economici, culturali e di prossimità geografica – il quadro impone una scelta politica non più rinviabile, senza rifugiarsi nel facile alibi della Realpolitik. Continuare a considerare Edi Rama un argine indispensabile e intoccabile, chiudendo gli occhi sullo svuotamento dei contrappesi democratici in cambio di patti sui migranti e cooperazione di polizia, significa commettere lo stesso errore strategico già pagato a caro prezzo in Nord Africa e Medio Oriente. L’idea che a est di Trieste la democrazia possa essere sacrificata sull’altare della stabilità a breve termine non solo tradisce i valori dichiarati dell’integrazione europea, ma crea un alleato strutturalmente fragile e imprevedibile. 

Quello che sta accadendo a Tirana non è un caso isolato, ma il riflesso di un vizio che attraversa l’intera regione balcanica e che l’Europa continua colpevolmente a ignorare. Da Belgrado a Tirana, leadership diverse nei toni ma affini nelle pratiche hanno imparato a disattivare la democrazia dall’interno, piegando norme, appalti e uffici pubblici per blindare il proprio consenso e ridurre ai minimi termini il controllo democratico. L’Ue ha commesso l’errore madornale di considerare questo accentramento verticistico come l’unico argine affidabile alle tensioni regionali e alle infiltrazioni di attori terzi. Ma una democrazia non vive di procedure svuotate: o i cittadini tornano a contare davvero oppure l’Europa continuerà a finanziare la propria instabilità futura, scambiando il monopolio del potere per sicurezza.

La Rivoluzione dei fenicotteri va dunque letta come un avvertimento. Non è un episodio di instabilità da gestire, ma la richiesta di un ordine politico diverso: uno in cui la stabilità non sia la facciata di un potere senza contrappesi, bensì il risultato di istituzioni capaci di rispondere ai cittadini. Per l’Occidente, la scelta non è tra Rama e la sua opposizione, né tra sviluppo e tutela ambientale. È tra una stabilità di facciata, destinata a produrre nuove crisi, e una stabilità sostanziale, fondata sullo Stato di diritto e sulla democrazia. 

L'articolo L’Albania di Rama sarà anche stabile, ma l’Occidente chiude gli occhi sulla democrazia proviene da Linkiesta.it.

US-backed Board of Peace says Albania to send liaison officers to region in November; Kosovo ministry tells ToI its explosives disposal team is ready, but awaits green light

Le “sedie del dialogo” fatte collocare da Edi Rama davanti al palazzo del governo sono state bruciate domenica pomeriggio, al culmine di un altro weekend di scontri di piazza. Nelle proteste in Albania che vanno avanti da quasi centocinquanta giorni c’è anche una vena situazionista che potrebbe far sorridere, se non ci fosse seriamente da preoccuparsi per la tenuta di una democrazia ancora giovane e fragile. 

Il primo ministro, memore del suo passato di pittore e quindi aduso alla messa in scena, mentre la capitale Tirana veniva trasformata in campo di battaglia, con azioni sempre più repressive della polizia, il 20 ottobre aveva fatto collocare delle eleganti sedie in damasco rosso con sopra la scritta “dialog”. Il giorno dopo le sedie erano state sostituite con altre nere e più spartane. Infine, al terzo giorno: solo dei cilindri in cemento armato. Alla scenografica offerta di dialogo rivolta ai giovani che protestano contro l’aumento delle rette universitarie, la mancanza di studentati, la fatiscenza delle strutture e, in definitiva, contro la corruzione dilagante e la cronica crisi economica che affligge il Paese, a dire il vero, Rama aveva accompagnato azioni concrete molto meno concilianti. 

Innanzitutto, il tentativo comprensibile di dividere la piazza tra i facinorosi e chi protesta in pace, poi l’affermazione non supportata da prove concrete, secondo cui tra gli studenti ci fossero «persone radicalizzate», manovrate da Russia e Iran con l’obiettivo di impedire l’ingresso dell’Albania nell’Unione europea. Ancora, la minaccia di abbassare l’età della responsabilità penale che oggi è già a 16 anni (e a 14 per i reati più gravi), infine il bonus di 2.500 euro concesso in corso d’opera agli agenti schierati in piazza, parso a molti come l’atto più evidente di una volontà repressiva.

La risposta è arrivata sabato sera, anch’essa scenografica: i manifestanti hanno imbracciato mortai per fuochi d’artificio contro i reparti antisommossa. Lo spettacolo pirotecnico ha presto lasciato spazio a un’altra battaglia, con migliaia di persone lungo le vie principali di Tirana e verso piazza Skanderbeg, un principio d’incendio all’ingresso del ministero del Turismo e seimila poliziotti pronti anche a esplodere proiettili di gomma ad altezza d’uomo e a menare a più non posso. I video sui social documentano il pestaggio di Lulzim, un manifestante lasciato a terra esanime, l’aggressione al giornalista di News24 Klevin Muka con spray al peperoncino, e soprattutto il ferimento di Erjon Vishkulli, un ventottenne che rischia di perdere l’occhio sinistro.  

La protesta albanese oscurata prima da quella per la crisi abitativa in Spagna, poi dalle violente manifestazioni in Francia, infine dalle devastazioni dei maranza a Milano, è rimasta periferica nell’attenzione dei media e dell’opinione pubblica europea, ma ha radici ancora più profonde. 

A fine maggio l’Albania era stata scossa dalla cosiddetta Rivoluzione dei fenicotteri. Decine e poi centinaia di migliaia di persone per 136 giorni consecutivi si sono date appuntamento ogni sera nel cuore di Tirana per dire no alla “svendita” del Paese ai capitali stranieri. Tutto era nato da una protesta ambientalista contro un resort e centinaia di ville che dovrebbe nascere tra l’isola incontaminata di Sazan e la costa di Zvernec, attorno alla zona umida di Narta, dove i fenicotteri ignari del diritto societario svernano da sempre. Dietro la mega speculazione da quattro miliardi di euro c’è la Atlantic Incubation Partners, una società che fa capo a Jared Kushner e alla moglie Ivanka, la figlia di Donald Trump.

I manifestanti hanno chiesto per mesi l’abrogazione di due leggi che rendono possibile la costruzione di alberghi e resort anche nelle aree protette. Inascoltati hanno cominciato ad alzare il tiro, mettendo in discussione la permanenza al governo di Rama, il leader del Partito socialista rieletto solo l’anno scorso con una maggioranza schiacciante e al potere senza interruzioni dal 15 settembre 2013.  

«La protesta era pacifica, a tratti giocosa – spiega Arbër Agalliu, giornalista albanese naturalizzato italiano -, e per la prima volta vedeva gli albanesi scendere in piazza senza una regia politica, senza dei leader riconoscibili. Una mobilitazione nato dal basso». La svolta è arrivata il 13 ottobre, con le rivendicazione studentesche e i primi tafferugli. Manifestazioni ancora senza capi, organizzate via chat, ma stavolta colme di rabbia, pronte allo scontro fisico e con un’unica piattaforma programmatica: le dimissioni di Edi Rama.

«Frutto del malcontento generato dai problemi economici, i salari bassi, il gap sempre più ampio tra chi, anche in Albania, ha raggiunto un benessere di livello europeo e chi sopravvive» dice ancora Agalliu. Un Paese in cui tra il 2011 e il 2023 sono emigrate oltre seicentomila persone, su una popolazione scesa a poco più di 2,3 milioni di abitanti. Un Paese che esporta i propri ventenni, ma importa braccia disposte a paghe da fame da India, Filippine ed Egitto. Un Paese scosso dagli scandali, con il sindaco di Tirana Erion Veliaj (successore di Rama, che lo era stato per undici anni) in carcere dal febbraio 2025 per corruzione e riciclaggio, o con la vicepremier Belinda Balluku costretta alle dimissioni e formalmente accusata proprio il 20 ottobre di aver interferito nell’assegnazione di appalti per duecento milioni di euro e di “riciclaggio di denaro proveniente da attività criminali”.

«La criminalità ha preso il controllo dello Stato. C’è una crisi delle istituzioni e della democrazia» ha detto Fatos Lubonja, uno degli intellettuali di maggior spicco, rimasto diciassette anni nelle prigioni di Enver Hoxha, critico sia con Rama che con l’opposizione guidata da Sali Berisha, vecchio politicante, a sua volta accusato di corruzione, sanzionato da Gran Bretagna e Stati Uniti per «atti di corruzione che hanno minato la democrazia». 

Sembra evidente, così, che per il governo in carica si tratti di una questione di vita o di morte politica, ma contro un avversario che non riesce a incasellare, che non può blandire, e che non vuole dialogare. «In Occidente nessun governo è mai caduto per le manifestazioni di piazza – dice ancora Agalliu -, e Rama è stato votato da ottocentomila albanesi: ha già detto che non si dimetterà, e anche se lo facesse ha la maggioranza assoluta in parlamento. Dall’altra parte, la piazza riuscirà magari a darsi dei leader, a compiere un upgrade politico come è accaduto in Serbia, ma ci vorrà del tempo». Merce che oggi non sembra la più a buon mercato in Albania.

In soli sette giorni, dal 13 al 19 ottobre, si sono contati trecentodieci feriti tra agenti e manifestanti, duecentosettantuno arresti, e la situazione non è certo migliorata nei sei giorni successivi. Res Publica, un’organizzazione che offre assistenza legale, ha presentato alla Procura speciale anticorruzione e criminalità organizzata (Spak) un esposto di ventinove pagine su oltre centottanta presunti episodi di abusi a Tirana e in altre città: foto, video, testimonianze riguardanti l’impiego sproporzionato della forza, arresti arbitrari, trattamenti degradanti, possibili violazioni dei diritti dei minorenni e ostacoli al lavoro della stampa. Non ancora un’inchiesta della magistratura, ma una denuncia circostanziata, mentre la vicenda di Erjon Vishkulli crea nuove frizioni. 

Il giovane è stato trasferito all’ospedale San Carlo di Roma e il primo ministro si è attribuito il merito dell’iniziativa: «L’ho presa io personalmente», smentito dalla sorella, secondo la quale in principio sarebbero stati la famiglia e gli amici a sostenere le spese. Rama stavolta ha comunicato su X con un post durissimo e teatrale: «Voi siete l’oscurità che ha chiuso a quel ragazzo la luce dell’occhio! Voi siete le dita e le unghie della mano maledetta che perseguita l’Albania fin dal 1912, chiudendole gli occhi ogni volta che questo paese vede la luce! Ma stavolta siete perduti…». Per poi annunciare nuove restrizioni alle proteste di piazza. Nulla di buono attende la Terra delle Aquile.

L'articolo La protesta che infiamma l’Albania è la più dura, e la più sottovalutata proviene da Linkiesta.it.

O que vem sendo mais preocupante para o governo albanês é o fato de que os manifestantes não podem ser descartados como membros de algum segmento social particular.

Junte-se a nós no Telegram , X e VK.

Escreva para nós: info@strategic-culture.su

A Albânia voltou a aparecer nas notícias nos últimos dias, com manifestações que acabaram culminando com a destruição do Ministério da Educação, mas o processo que levou a este caos se iniciou há alguns meses por causa das negociações em torno à construção de um gigantesco resort de luxo no país, num megaprojeto capitaneado pela Affinity Partners, de Jared Kushner, o agente sionista que é genro de Donald Trump e que, ocasionalmente, atua como seu diplomata ad hoc. Junto a Kushner, neste projeto, havia também capital de três petromonarquias árabes e investidores locais.

O primeiro ponto de dissenso, a fagulha, por assim dizer, deste incêndio, foi o fato de que o projeto seria construído numa área de proteção ambiental, na zona úmida pantanosa da Albânia, que é considerada um paraíso natural onde se nidificam flamingos, pelicanos e outros animais, alguns deles estando ameaçados de extinção. Ainda assim, Kushner conseguiu autorização do governo de Edi Rama para ir em frente com o projeto, bem como a classificação de investidor estratégico, o que lhe permite passar por cima dos regulamentos locais.

O projeto em si deve alcançar a soma de 4.7 bilhões de dólares e seria implementado na ilha de Sazan (outrora uma base militar), na ilha de Vjosa-Narta e na ilha de Zvernec, que também possuem características defensivas. Kushner teria tido a “ideia” e “descoberto” Sazan enquanto viajava no iate de seu amigo Nathan Rothschild, contexto no qual também conheceu o primeiro-ministro albanês.

Os outros parceiros de Kushner na Affinity Parnters são Luis Videgaray, ex-Ministro de Finanças do México, e Elad Gil, um investidor israelense, e o projeto envolve a construção de hotéis, marinas e vilas privadas, num esforço que parece apontar para uma “dubaização” da Albânia.

Desde junho, portanto, quando esses negócios escusos foram revelados, cidadãos albaneses passaram a ir às ruas protestar, com palavras de ordem (“A Albânia não está à venda”) contra Washington e Tel-Aviv e pregando a transformação de Kushner em persona non grata. Os protestos já vinham na sequência de protestos organizados em fevereiro e março por acusações de corrupção contra Edi Rama, bem como pelo fato do primeiro-ministro albanês ter começado uma campanha para que israelenses se mudassem para a Albânia.

O que vem sendo mais preocupante para o governo albanês é o fato de que esses manifestantes não podem ser descartados como membros de algum segmento social particular, sendo em vez disso uma movimentação suprapartidária de todos os setores da sociedade. E as manifestações seguiram, intermitentemente, até agora em outubro, o que aponta para uma insatisfação permanente e difícil de sufocar.

Os protestos mais recentes estão mais focados na juventude e em novos escândalos de corrupção, problemas na educação e tentativas do governo de “forçar” um ingresso na União Europeia, mas a questão do resort de luxo de Jared Kushner permanece em pauta.

É possível analisar o caso do ângulo conspiracionista da “Ilha Epstein”, ainda mais considerando os vínculos da família Rothschild com Epstein e com Kushner, mas talvez um ângulo mais interessante aponte para a geopolítica do Mediterrâneo e o projeto de poder do Estado de Israel.

Israel tem ampliado suas atividades nessa área e expandido a sua presença. Investidores israelenses, por exemplo, têm adquirido em massa propriedades no Chipre e na cidade portuária grega de Kalamata. Quando somamos essas investidas visando propriedades no Chipre, Grécia e agora Albânia percebemos claramente que há um enfoque mediterrâneo oriental nas atividades empresariais paraestatais israelenses. Chama a atenção que se trata, sempre, de ilhas e portos, o que aponta especificamente para a construção de uma estratégia talassocrática por parte do Estado de Israel.

Chama a atenção também, um tema específico da realidade político-social albanesa, que é o fato de que tornou-se prática comum que investidores albaneses, após serem legitimados como investidores estratégicos para garantir a aprovação de projetos de desenvolvimento, revendem as suas participações acionárias por valores ínfimos para outros atores mais obscuros. Em muitos casos, estamos falando aí de esquemas de “laranja” utilizados pela máfia albanesa. Não seria o caso, naturalmente, de Kushner ou das petromonarquias árabes, mas a suspeita levantada atinge os parceiros albaneses desse investimento.

Talvez por isso a repressão violenta dos protestos tenham chamado menos atenção do que em outros lugares. Parece se tratar da autêntica erupção de insatisfação popular num país que há décadas tem sido vitimado por líderes corrupções, máfias perigosíssimas e terroristas brutais.

French police have made 1,000 arrests and Italian officers have raided homes in Milan, with protests also taking place in Spain and Albania

Jesse, 40, a charity worker from the north of Paris, had turned out for the street march.

She said: “I’m so angry. I’m here to support schoolchildren’s demands for better conditions. I’m so proud of them and we have to stand together.”

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Abdul Saboor/Reuters

© Photograph: Abdul Saboor/Reuters

© Photograph: Abdul Saboor/Reuters

The months-long protests in Albania have reached a new escalation, with university students strengthening their mobilization since mid-October.

Concerns about study expenses, poor employment prospects, and low wages have added impetus to a movement that has demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama and urgent action on the widespread corruption weighing on the country.

“Students have brought the Flamingo Revolution into a new phase,” wrote the Solidarity Albania platform. “In a capital where living costs devour 170% of the median net wage, public universities are starved to force youth into economic exile.”

“When a generation rises for its basic rights, the only legitimate response is total solidarity,” they added.

“Tirana’s struggle stands shoulder-to-shoulder with student strikes in France and India, and with liberation struggles in Palestine, Sudan, and the Congo, and elsewhere.”

Police violence brings comparisons to protests in France

Mass mobilizations against elite tourism projects, the devastation of Albania’s natural resources, and corruption have been ongoing since May this year – evolving in what was dubbed the Flamingo Revolution. 

For the past months, demonstrations have continued on a daily basis, Enriko Peçuli from the progressive party Lëvizja Bashkë told BreakThrough News. “Some days you saw more people on the streets, sometimes a bit less, but gatherings continued basically every night: the energy was there.”

On October 13, when the latest upsurge began, “you could sense in the city that something was going to happen,” Peçuli adds. When students assembled in large numbers near the Ministry of Education and part of the building caught fire, police violence erupted, Peçuli says – and has continued for ten days in a row.

Read more: Protests banned and curfews declared ahead of next major mobilization in France

The authorities’ violent response has drawn comparisons to the institutional response to youth mobilizations in France, yet it represents a new element in local mobilizations. During other significant demonstrations, including the student protests in 2018, it was not as pronounced, Peçuli says – possibly indicating Rama’s worsening position. 

Ever since the beginning of the protests, the prime minister has tried to deflect responsibility and avoided the protesters’ core demand: his resignation.

When the Flamingo Revolution started, Peçuli describes, Rama tried to blame it on foreign powers. He has named the governments of Greece, Iran, and Russia as culprits for the mobilizations. “It’s only gotten worse with time,” the activist points out. “He’s becoming more and more arrogant, he uses a language of violence.”

“Rage is pushing people into the streets”

After the escalation of the past days, Rama attempted – in a way – to establish dialogue with the students. This was resolutely rejected, as Peçuli notes that protesters will not agree to anything less than the government’s resignation.

“It’s spontaneous rage pushing people into the streets,” he said, nodding to the events’ decentralized character that some have credited for at least part of the demonstrations’ longevity.

“We don’t have trade unions or big student movements [like the ones in France], society is generally not organized in the same way,” Peçuli points out – but there’s no sign of backing down. 

“Rama might have offered dialogue, but it’s difficult to take that seriously after the past 10 days. After you’ve sanctioned breaking people’s heads, your right to call for dialogue is a bit limited.”

The protesters cannot be dismissed as members of some particular social segment, being instead a cross-party movement from all sectors of society.

Join us on Telegram, X, and VK.

Contact us: info@strategic-culture.su

Albania has returned to the news in recent days, with protests that eventually culminated in the destruction of the Ministry of Education, but the process that led to this chaos began some months ago because of the negotiations surrounding the construction of a gigantic luxury resort in the country, in a megaproject led by Affinity Partners, owned by Jared Kushner, the Zionist agent who is Donald Trump’s son-in-law and who occasionally acts as his ad hoc diplomat. Alongside Kushner in this project, there was also capital from three Arab petro-monarchies and local investors.

The first point of dissent, the spark, so to speak, of this fire, was the fact that the project would be built in an environmental protection area, in the marshy wetland zone of Albania, which is considered a natural paradise where flamingos, pelicans and other animals nest, some of them endangered. Nevertheless, Kushner obtained authorization from Edi Rama’s government to go ahead with the project, as well as the classification of strategic investor, which allows him to bypass local regulations.

The project itself is expected to reach the sum of 4.7 billion dollars and would be implemented on the island of Sazan (once a military base), on the island of Vjosa-Narta and on the island of Zvernec, which also have defensive characteristics. Kushner supposedly had the “idea” and “discovered” Sazan while traveling on the yacht of his friend Nathan Rothschild, a context in which he also met the Albanian prime minister.

Kushner’s other partners at Affinity Partners are Luis Videgaray, former Minister of Finance of Mexico, and Elad Gil, an Israeli investor, and the project involves the construction of hotels, marinas and private villas, in an effort that seems to point toward a “Dubai-ization” of Albania.

Since June, therefore, when these shady deals were revealed, Albanian citizens began going to the streets to protest, with slogans (“Albania is not for sale”) against Washington and Tel Aviv and calling for Kushner to be made persona non grata. The protests had already been following protests organized in February and March over corruption accusations against Edi Rama, as well as the fact that the Albanian prime minister had begun a campaign to encourage Israelis to move to Albania.

What has been most worrying for the Albanian government is the fact that these protesters cannot be dismissed as members of some particular social segment, being instead a cross-party movement from all sectors of society. And the protests continued, intermittently, until now in October, which points to a permanent dissatisfaction that is difficult to stifle.

The most recent protests are more focused on youth and on new corruption scandals, problems in education and the government’s attempts to “force” entry into the European Union, but the issue of Jared Kushner’s luxury resort remains on the agenda.

It is possible to analyze the case from the conspiracy-minded angle of “Epstein Island,” especially considering the Rothschild family’s ties to Epstein and to Kushner, but perhaps a more interesting angle points to the geopolitics of the Mediterranean and the power project of the State of Israel.

Israel has been expanding its activities in this area and expanding its presence. Israeli investors, for example, have been mass-acquiring properties in Cyprus and in the Greek port city of Kalamata. When we add up these ventures targeting properties in Cyprus, Greece and now Albania, we clearly perceive that there is an eastern Mediterranean focus in Israeli parastatal business activities. It is striking that these always involve islands and ports, which points specifically to the construction of a thalassocratic strategy on the part of the State of Israel.

Also striking is a specific theme of Albanian political-social reality, which is the fact that it has become common practice for Albanian investors, after being legitimized as strategic investors to secure approval for development projects, to resell their shareholdings for negligible amounts to other, more obscure actors. In many cases, we are talking here about “straw man” schemes used by the Albanian mafia. That would not naturally be the case for Kushner or the Arab petro-monarchies, but the suspicion raised affects the Albanian partners in this investment.

Perhaps that is why the violent repression of the protests has drawn less attention than elsewhere. It appears to be the authentic eruption of popular dissatisfaction in a country that for decades has been victimized by corrupt leaders, highly dangerous mafias and brutal terrorists.

Começou em França, em setembro, com os estudantes do secundário na rua. Desde então, juntaram-se-lhes jovens em pelo menos outros sete países europeus. “Estamos fartos de tudo”. Jovens espanhóis e portugueses montaram tendas nas capitais para protestar contra as rendas altas. Franceses e italianos marcharam por melhores condições nas escolas, em manifestações manchadas por saques. Na Grécia, pede-se mais dinheiro para as universidades; na Albânia, os jovens entraram em confrontos com a polícia depois de se juntarem a protestos anti-corrupção contra um governo que acusam de lhes travar o futuro. As exigências mudam de país para país, mas há um

Each country’s protesters have distinct grievances. Listen to them, not the voices telling us Europe is ungovernable

Last Saturday night, the town hall of Limoges in west-central France was set ablaze. By Sunday, images of the fire destroying a symbol of the French republic, and other scenes of unrest across France, were everywhere, but being used to tell very different stories about what is happening in Europe.

For some, the flames announced a pan-European youth revolt, proof that a single movement was sweeping the continent. Donald Trump, who had already insisted that the French schools protests were not about schools but about migration and Islam, urged Europeans to “close the borders”. The mayor of Limoges saw the fingerprints of an alleged ultra-left insurrection.

Alberto Alemanno is the Jean Monnet professor of EU law at HEC Paris and the founder of The Good Lobby

France readers Q&A: Guardian Europe columnists Rokhaya Diallo and Alexander Hurst will be live taking questions from our readers about the unrest in France from at 1500 BST / 1600 CEST on Friday 23 October. Send your questions by email now to conversations@theguardian.com or post questions in the comments from 0900 BST here.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Aurélien Morissard/AP

© Photograph: Aurélien Morissard/AP

© Photograph: Aurélien Morissard/AP

Since high school students began protesting in France in September, they’ve been joined by young demonstrators in at least seven other European countries.

© Angelos Tzortzinis/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Hamstrung governments seem to have no answer to the public’s furious demands, making further discontent likely

• Europe live – latest updates

In France, it was the piles of wheelie bins stacked up against school entrances that first hinted at the scale of student anger over crumbling classrooms and teacher shortages. In Spain, it was a tent camp that steadily grew in the heart of the capital as residents railed against soaring housing costs.

Similar scenes have since sprung up in Belgium, Italy and Portugal, and clashes have convulsed Albania’s capital of Tirana, hinting at an autumn of protests across Europe.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Tom Lartige Catillon/Getty Images

© Photograph: Tom Lartige Catillon/Getty Images

© Photograph: Tom Lartige Catillon/Getty Images

Students, teachers and civil servants have shown up in Athens, with demonstrations also in Thessaloniki and other cities

Meanwhile, back to Witkoff’s meeting with Putin in St Petersburg, the US president, Donald Trump, has just welcomed the release of Stephen Hubbard, a US citizen held by Moscow on allegations of fighting as a mercenary for Ukraine (11:24).

In a post on Truth Social, he said:

“Stephen Hubbard, taken four years ago by Russia during the Biden Administration, was just released from prison, at the request of President Donald J. Trump, made directly to President Vladimir Putin in a telephone conversation last week.

Stephen is on his way back home and will soon be with his family. The United States, out of respect for President Trump, was not required to give anything in return - an unprecedented situation for Russia. There was no “swap” necessary for this release.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Costas Baltas/Anadolu/Getty Images

© Photograph: Costas Baltas/Anadolu/Getty Images

© Photograph: Costas Baltas/Anadolu/Getty Images

Students and demonstrators gather in Tirana for an eighth day of protests, calling for the prime minister's resignation over corruption, job shortages and poor education standards

• Albania accused of rushing through Trump-linked resort in formerly protected landscape

Continue reading...

© Photograph: AP

© Photograph: AP

© Photograph: AP

Violent demonstrations have rocked Europe as protesters call for action over poor university conditions, high tuition fees, corruption, housing costs and the high cost of living

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Boris Grdanoski/AP

© Photograph: Boris Grdanoski/AP

© Photograph: Boris Grdanoski/AP

In Paris, students have protested over shortages of teachers, overcrowded classrooms and deteriorating school buildings.

In Spain, the eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal — who died on 7 October — became a rallying point for housing protests.

In Tirana, students joined wider demonstrations over education costs and corruption allegations.

These are not parts of a single movement, and the protests do not have one common cause. But they bring into focus a shared challenge: whether young people can see a credible route from education to decent work, and from financial dependence to a life of their own. 

France: school conditions shape the starting line

Since September, French students have demonstrated over teacher shortages, overcrowded classes and deteriorating school buildings. Their demands concern more than the day-to-day running of schools. They also raise a question about equal opportunity: can public education give every student the tools to move forward, regardless of where they live or what their family can afford?

The wider figures help explain why that question matters.

In 2025, 25.5 percent of people aged 15–29 in France were at risk of poverty or social exclusion, compared with 24.2 percent across the EU, according to Eurostat.

In August 2026, unemployment among under-25s stood at 20.6 percent, against 8.2 percent for the population as a whole. The corresponding EU rates were 15.4 percent and 6.1 percent.

These figures do not show that school shortages cause youth unemployment. They do show how difficult the step from education into work remains for many young people and why well-resourced schools matter most in areas with the fewest opportunities.

Housing can make that transition harder still. In Paris, one-in-two private tenants under 30 spends more than 51 percent of their income on rent. A Eurostat indicator also shows that 70 percent of 20–24-year-olds and 25 percent of 25–29-year-olds either live with their parents or are financially connected to their household. 

France scored 66 out of 100 and ranked 27th of 182 countries in Transparency International’s 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index. The index measures perceptions of public-sector corruption, not the number of proven incidents. It does not explain the school protests, but it underlines why transparency and accountability matter when public services and resources are at stake.

Spain: when housing delays independence

Abascal’s eviction from the Madrid flat where she had lived for decades prompted demonstrations in several Spanish cities and renewed calls for stronger tenant protections. Her case was not a youth protest, but it put a human face on a housing crisis that also shapes whether younger people can leave home and build an independent life.

In 2025, 67.1 percent of Spaniards aged 18–34 lived with at least one parent, according to Spain’s National Statistics Institute.

Among those living with a parent, 28.3 percent said they could not afford to rent. The average age at which young people left home was 30.2, compared with 26.3 across the EU, according to Eurostat.

Housing pressure does not operate in isolation. In 2025, 27.6 percent of Spaniards aged 15–29 were at risk of poverty or social exclusion, above the EU rate of 24.2%.

In August 2026, unemployment among under-25s was 22.7 percent, more than twice the overall rate of 10 percent. When joblessness is so much higher among the young and rent is beyond the reach of many, delayed independence cannot be reduced to personal preference.

Spain scored 55/100 in the 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index, ranking 49th of 182 countries. That score does not establish a link between corruption and housing protests. But when people are asking for effective action on housing, transparency over how decisions are made — and accountability for whether they work — are part of the debate.

Albania: growth is not enough if young people see no path forward

In October, students in Tirana protested over education costs and corruption allegations, joining a broader anti-government movement. Their participation brought education and young people’s prospects into a wider debate about living costs, employment and trust in public institutions.

Albania’s official figures show that 19 percent of the population was at risk of relative poverty in 2025, while 31.2 percent experienced severe material and social deprivation, according to INSTAT. The two measures describe different aspects of hardship: one compares household income with the national poverty threshold; the other captures enforced inability to afford basic goods and activities.

Young people also face a difficult entry into the labour market. The World Bank’s ILO-modelled estimates put overall unemployment at 10.9 percent in 2025, rising to 25.6 percent among 15–24-year-olds. The estimated average age of leaving the parental household seemed to be 30.9, compared with 26.3 in the EU, according to Eurostat’s dataset. Together, however, these indicators describe the hurdles between education, employment and independence.

Albania scored 39/100 and ranked 91st of 182 countries in the 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index. The measure is not a count of actual cases, but corruption allegations are part of the protests themselves. That makes transparency, accountability and public trust more than abstract principles: they shape whether people believe institutions respond fairly to their concerns.

Behind the statistics

Behind the statistics are millions of young people struggling to turn their ambitions into reality. The obstacles reinforce one another: under-resourced schools can narrow choices, unemployment can delay financial independence, and high housing costs can prolong dependence on family.

Across the EU, house prices rose by 55.4 percent and rents by 26.7 percent between 2010 and 2024, often outpacing income growth, according to Eurofound.

That is why the response cannot be confined to one policy area. It means properly staffed and maintained schools, routes from education into decent work, more affordable and social housing, targeted help with rent, and stronger protections for tenants.

Young people should also have a meaningful say in policies that shape their education, employment and housing.

A strong welfare state and effective social protection can help ensure that a young person’s prospects are not determined solely by family income or place of birth. If a low-income family cannot support a young person’s move towards independence, financial dependence can pass from one generation to the next. Tackling that cycle is part of building social justice and societies in which young people can plan a future with greater confidence.

The future will show whether today’s protests lead to lasting policies. The test will be whether young people can study, find decent work and afford a home without their prospects being set by the circumstances into which they were born.

RT | October 19, 2026

Anti-government rioters have torched Albania’s education ministry and supreme court, as protests spread across the Balkan nation. Prime Minister Edi Rama is refusing to step down and blames the unrest on Russia. What’s really going on?

As of October 19, the Albanian capital of Tirana has been rocked by seven consecutive days and nights of rioting, while protests and clashes between demonstrators and police have been reported in the cities of Lezhe, Vlore, Elbasan, and Shkoder. A large group of rioters breached the perimeter of the education ministry in Tirana on October 14, setting the building on fire.

Running battles between demonstrators and police have broken out around the ministry on several occasions since. On October 19, hundreds of demonstrators pelted rocks at riot police, who responded with tear gas and rubber bullets. The previous night, offices of the Albanian Supreme Court were set on fire, and arson attacks on several police stations in the city were reported.

Some 500 demonstrators had been detained and 167 of them formally arrested as of October 17, according to Reuters. 295 people had been injured, including 196 police officers, as of October 19, according to Interior Minister Ervin Demo.

What do the protesters want?

The protests follow more than a year of unrest in Albania, which began when Rama banned TikTok in the runup to last March’s parliamentary elections, following similar measures inposed by the EU during every major election across the bloc since 2024. The ban was lifted in February of this year, but demonstrations broke out again in May after Rama’s government authorized the sale of protected wetlands to a development company operated by US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
WATCH smashed storefronts, burned buildings as Europe faces aftermath of latest violent protests READ MORE: WATCH smashed storefronts, burned buildings as Europe faces aftermath of latest violent protests

The protesters demanded the resignation of Rama and his entire cabinet, and the cancellation of a planned twin-phase resort project on the wetlands and on nearby Sazan Island.

The protesters’ core demand – that Rama resign – remains unchanged. However, the movement is now calling for a root-and-branch reform of the entire Albanian establishment, with demonstrators accusing both Rama and opposition leader Sali Berisha of corruption. Unemployment, underfunding of schools, and declining living standards have also been cited by protesters as grievances.

What did Rama say about the protests?

Despite the repeated chants of “Rama resign” heard at the protests, Rama has claimed that the demonstrators do not oppose his government, but Albania’s “mission” of joining the EU.

“I am not being challenged,” he said in a video address on October 18. “The government is not being challenged, a government majority or a winning party in the elections is not being challenged but a path is being challenged, a mission is being challenged”

“Albanians need to think ​very clearly,” he continued. “Do they want this, do they want that, or do they want the EU?”

Rama has refused to resign, and blamed the protests on “foreign hands that do not wish for Albania to be at peace.” Back in June, Rama accused “the enemies of Albania and of Israel” of waging a “hybrid war” to stop the wetlands development. In two separate speeches on October 18 and 19, the embattled PM blamed the unrest on Russian philosopher Alexander Dugin and a “wave of Russian influence in the entire social media system,” and on “the Khomeiniist republic of Iran, the pinnacle of disinformation.”
Was Russia involved?

In short, no. Rama has not backed up any of his accusations, and they are being treated with skepticism and ridicule by demonstrators and opposition media. Albania’s Publik Media news outlet criticised Rama for “eturn[ing[ to the Berisha, Russia and Iran alibi,” while Pamfleti, an investigative outlet, dismissed his claims as an “ignorant reaction to those protesting his misgovernance”

Even the US-run Radio Free Europe noted that Rama “did not present public evidence” to back up his allegations.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has rejected Rama’s accusations. “No, Edi Rama,” she said on October 18, “it is the citizens of your country who have taken to the streets in protest.”

“This has all the hallmarks of the ‘highly likely’ British approach,” Serbian journalist Nebojsa Malic told RT on October 19, referring to British Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s failed attempts to blame the 2016 Brexit vote on Russia and a recent ‘terror plot’ at a US airbase on Iran. “We’ll just make an accusation and provide no evidence but say ‘oh it’s highly likely that Russia’s behind this’, and everybody is going to take it for granted.”

Rama is “doing this because he’s hoping it will stick,” Malic said. “He has nothing to lose. He’s seen plenty of leaders in western Europe essentially getting away scot free with covering for their malice and incompetence by blaming Russia.”

“Rama is just as opportunistic as [French President Emmanuel] Macron or any British prime minister in the last ten years,” Malic concluded. “They will say or do whatever, because they think that Russia is not able to defend itself.”

Why did Rama mention Israel?

Rama’s claim that “enemies of Albania and Israel” were behind this summer’s environmental protests stems from the involvement of Kushner in the wetlands project. A close associate of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Kushner has extensive family and financial ties to Israel. His investment firm, Affinity Partners, has funneled Emirati, Saudi, and Qatari cash into multiple Israeli businesses, including five arms manufacturers.

However, all available information suggests that the funding for Kushner’s Albanian projects comes from Albanian, American, and Qatari individuals and entities. Affinity Partners is leading the €1.4 billion Sazan Island project, while Kushner himself is a minority partner in the wetlands development.

Rama visited Israel and addressed the Knesset in January. Less than 24 hours later, Israel’s Channel 12 claimed that the Albanian PM had struck a deal with Netanyahu to accept up to 100,000 Palestinian refugees from Gaza. As speculation spread that the Palestinians would be resettled on land developed by Kushner, Rama clarified that no such deal had been, or would be, made.

Regardless, Rama’s close relations with Netanyahu are at odds with public opinion in Albania, where a 2024 poll found that 73% of the population believe that Israel should be sanctioned over its war on Gaza. Kushner is widely seen in Albania as representing Israeli interests, and Rama’s decision to amend environmental laws and grant “strategic investor” status to Affinity Partners has fueled accusations that the PM is placing Washington and West Jerusalem’s interests above Tirana’s.

Will there be an Albanian Maidan?

Some images emerging from Tirana – burning barricades, police officers set on fire with Molotov cocktails, and smouldering government buildings – are reminiscent of the scenes that played out during the 2014 ‘Maidan’ coup in Ukraine. However, Rama is in far less perilous of a position than Ukraine’s president, Viktor Yanukovich, was during the 2014 uprising.

Unlike the present unrest in Albania, the Maidan coup was planned and directed by foreign actors, namely the US State Department and the British embassy in Kiev. Rama, on the other hand, is a close partner of the EU and US, and neither Washington nor Brussels have backed the protesters. Instead, Rama has apparently been given carte blanche to squash the demonstrations, with columns of military vehicles seen entering Tirana between October 15 and 19.

The EU has condemned the use of violence by protesters, with the European Commission criticizing them for “arson, attacks on State institutions and the destruction of public and private property.” In a statement on October 18, the commission praised Rama’s progress toward EU membership and welcomed his “commitment that the right to protest will be protected.”

One week earlier, an EU delegation in Tirana said that Brussels was “aware of allegations of excessive use of force by the police against protesters and journalists,” adding that the government’s response to protests and riots “must remain within the law.”

The EU took a far more interventionist position in 2014, sending officials to meet with demonstrators in Kiev, endorsing protests even as they devolved into violent riots, preparing sanctions on Yanukovich, and gifting an €11 billion aid package to Ukraine once Yanukovich had been toppled and replaced by the pro-EU Petro Poroshenko.

The West is still firmly on Rama’s side, and he is unlikely to face any calls for resignation from abroad. However, he is still facing the most sustained public pressure campaign of his 13-year stint in power, and if the protests continue and more buildings burn, he may be left with no choice but to admit defeat and step down.

Dutch MEP says government is trying to avoid EU environmental rules as protests over luxury development turn violent

MEPs have accused Albania of deploying “sneaky” practices to fast-track a proposed Trump-linked luxury resort in the country amid protests that have turned increasingly violent.

As the prime minister, Edi Rama, pledged to “listen to the voices of young people” taking to the streets, there was mounting criticism of his failure to address demonstrators who had long opposed the controversial project peacefully.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Adnan Beci/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Adnan Beci/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Adnan Beci/AFP/Getty Images

School conditions, unaffordable housing and the cost of living have brought demonstrators on to the streets in several countries

• Europe live – latest updates

Young people have been taking to the streets across Europe, including in Spain, France and Portugal, to protest over their unhappiness at the state of schools and the wider cost of living crisis.

In France, high school pupils have clashed with police in often violent protests over long hours, missing teachers, dilapidated classrooms and an opaque university admissions system. Pupils routinely miss months of teaching due to unfilled staff absences.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Benoît Tessier/Reuters

© Photograph: Benoît Tessier/Reuters

© Photograph: Benoît Tessier/Reuters

Police fired rubber bullets and tear gas during a fifth consecutive day of unrest in Tirana, as student demonstrations over corruption, employment and education developed into a nationwide challenge to the government.

Albania’s political crisis deepened on Saturday, 17th October, as violent anti-government protests continued for a fifth consecutive day, with demonstrators attacking police and public buildings in the capital, Tirana, and demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama.

Police used tear gas, water cannon and rubber bullets to disperse protesters outside the Ministry of Education after groups of masked demonstrators threw stones, petrol bombs and fireworks at security forces. The disturbances subsequently spread through the city centre, including areas near the prime minister’s office.

According to the latest figures released by Albanian police, 167 people had been arrested and 132 officers injured during five days of unrest. Seven police officers were also suspended pending investigations into allegations of excessive force.

The demonstrations have become one of the most serious domestic challenges to Rama since his Socialist Party came to power in 2013.

Students transform an environmental protest into a political movement

The current unrest grew out of a campaign known as the Flamingo movement, which began earlier this year in opposition to a controversial luxury tourism development associated with Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of US President Donald Trump.

The development attracted objections from local residents and environmental campaigners concerned about land ownership, planning decisions and potential damage to protected coastal areas.

What began as a dispute over tourism development subsequently expanded into a wider protest against alleged government corruption, unemployment, education standards and the cost of living.

The involvement of high-school and university students has considerably increased both the scale and political significance of the demonstrations.

Students have demanded improvements to educational facilities, additional financial support and better employment opportunities for graduates. Frustration over the limited prospects available to young Albanians has also brought emigration into the debate.

During Saturday’s demonstrations, protesters burned a suitcase outside the Education Ministry, using it as a symbol of the pressure on young people to leave Albania in search of work.

The protests began peacefully before violence erupted when masked participants attacked police positions.

According to accounts from Tirana, government offices, banks and commercial premises have been damaged during several days of confrontations.

Demonstrations have also spread beyond Tirana to other Albanian cities.

Rama refuses to resign

Rama, who is serving his fourth term as prime minister, has rejected demands for his resignation and accused political opponents of encouraging violence to destabilise the government.

He has acknowledged the right of citizens to demonstrate but insisted that attacks on public institutions and private property cannot be treated as legitimate political protest.

The government has pledged to prosecute those responsible for vandalism and assaults on police officers.

National Police Chief Skender Hita has defended the security operation, arguing that officers have faced repeated attacks by masked groups. At the same time, the suspension of seven officers indicates that allegations concerning police conduct are being investigated.

The political opposition has sought to capitalise on the unrest, although the Flamingo movement initially developed outside Albania’s established party structures.

That distinction complicates the government’s argument that the demonstrations are primarily the result of opposition-party activity.

The protests have also exposed tensions between the government’s economic development policies and opposition from communities concerned about corruption, land rights and access to employment.

EU accession adds another dimension

The crisis comes at a particularly sensitive moment in Albania’s negotiations to join the European Union.

On 13th October, just as the demonstrations were gathering momentum, Brussels and Tirana provisionally closed negotiations on enterprise and industrial policy.

The agreement marked another step towards membership, bringing the number of provisionally completed negotiating chapters to four out of 33.

Albania has already opened all 33 chapters, placing it among the more advanced candidates in the Western Balkans.

However, the EU’s negotiating framework makes clear that progress on fundamental reforms, including judicial independence, democratic institutions and the rule of law, determines the overall pace of accession.

As EU Today recently reported, Brussels is considering additional safeguards designed to prevent democratic backsliding following enlargement.

The current protests do not automatically jeopardise Albania’s accession negotiations. Public demonstrations, including those directed against an elected government, are not themselves evidence of a failure to meet democratic standards.

The relevant questions for Brussels concern the authorities’ response, the independence of investigations into police conduct, the treatment of detainees and whether allegations of corruption are properly examined.

These matters fall directly within the EU’s assessment of the rule of law and the functioning of democratic institutions.

A political test ahead of possible EU membership

Rama has made EU membership by 2030 a central objective of his government, presenting accession as the foundation of Albania’s future economic and political development.

The acceleration of negotiations has given his administration a substantial diplomatic achievement. It has not, however, resolved dissatisfaction over domestic governance or living standards.

The growing involvement of students also means the demonstrations are no longer confined to the environmental dispute that originally triggered the movement.

For the European Commission, the immediate challenge is to maintain a credible distinction between technical progress in accession negotiations and its assessment of political developments inside the candidate country.

For Rama, the question is whether he can restore public order without intensifying opposition to a government that has been in office for more than 13 years.

Further demonstrations would place additional pressure on the authorities, particularly if the movement continues to spread beyond the capital and attracts broader support from trade unions, students and other dissatisfied groups.

Montenegro and Albania will hold separate accession conferences on 12 and 13 October as the European Commission introduces proposals for stronger safeguards against democratic backsliding, linking the next phase of EU enlargement to reforms within the Union itself.

Montenegro and Albania are preparing for another round of European Union accession negotiations this week, with meetings in Luxembourg scheduled to advance their membership bids as Brussels considers substantial changes to the conditions under which future countries will join the bloc.

Montenegro’s 29th accession conference will take place on Monday, 12 October, followed by Albania’s tenth conference on Tuesday. The meetings come less than a week after the European Commission presented a package of proposals intended to prepare the EU for enlargement while strengthening its ability to respond to breaches of democratic standards by newly admitted members.

For Montenegro, the immediate objective is to continue closing negotiating chapters after years of institutional and legal reforms. Albania’s meeting has a more precisely defined agenda: the provisional closure of Chapter 20, covering enterprise and industrial policy.

Both countries have made progress towards membership, but the Commission’s latest proposals indicate that the terms of accession could become more demanding as the EU considers admitting several new members.

Montenegro moves towards the final negotiating stage

Montenegro is widely regarded as the most advanced candidate among the Western Balkan countries.

Accession negotiations began in 2012, and all 33 negotiating chapters have been opened. Progress towards closure has accelerated as the government seeks to complete the process and secure an accession treaty.

At the end of 2025, Montenegro provisionally closed five chapters covering services, capital movements, company law, agriculture and fisheries.

As EU Today reported following that conference, the agreements brought the number of provisionally closed chapters to twelve at that stage, while the EU continued to emphasise the importance of judicial reform and sustained implementation.

Subsequent accession conferences have continued the negotiating process, with the 29th conference scheduled for 12 October.

The Commission has identified Montenegro as a country capable of concluding accession negotiations by the end of 2026, provided sufficient progress is maintained.

That objective does not mean membership would follow automatically. A completed negotiation must still lead to an accession treaty, which requires approval by all existing member states and ratification under their constitutional procedures.

Outstanding questions include the independence of the judiciary, enforcement of anti-corruption legislation and the capacity of state institutions to apply EU law consistently.

Albania advances in industrial policy negotiations

Albania’s accession process has also gained momentum, supported by renewed EU interest in incorporating the Western Balkans into European political and economic structures.

The conference scheduled for 13 October is expected to provisionally close Chapter 20, which covers enterprise and industrial policy.

The chapter concerns the legal and institutional environment in which businesses operate, including industrial competitiveness, entrepreneurship and policies supporting small and medium-sized enterprises.

Provisional closure would represent further progress in Albania’s alignment with EU legislation and policy, although it would not constitute a final agreement on accession.

As with Montenegro, the negotiating framework requires sustained progress on the fundamentals of membership, notably judicial independence, fundamental rights, corruption and organised crime.

Brussels prepares stronger safeguards

The latest accession conferences follow the European Commission’s proposals of 6 October, which address the institutional consequences of admitting new countries.

The Commission argues that enlargement can be accommodated within the existing treaties, but that the EU will need additional safeguards and improvements to decision-making.

Among the most consequential proposals is the possibility of suspending a new member state’s voting rights in the Council if it commits serious breaches of the Union’s fundamental values or the principle of sincere cooperation.

Such provisions would be incorporated into future accession arrangements, making some membership conditions enforceable after a country has joined.

The proposal reflects concerns that the EU’s existing mechanisms for responding to democratic backsliding can be slow and politically difficult to apply.

In June, EU Today reported on proposals advanced by five member states seeking stronger protections against governments that might undermine common decisions after accession.

The Commission’s October package develops that argument into a broader programme of institutional preparation.

Enlargement beyond the Western Balkans

The debate extends to Ukraine and Moldova, whose membership applications have acquired greater strategic importance following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The Commission is examining how candidate countries can progressively participate in EU policies and programmes before obtaining full membership.

These arrangements could include greater integration in energy, transport, defence and selected areas of the single market, subject to the implementation of relevant reforms.

Brussels is also considering transitional arrangements affecting agricultural support, financial transfers and sensitive sectors of the economy.

The political challenge is to provide candidate countries with credible membership prospects while reassuring existing members that enlargement will not weaken common decision-making or create unsustainable budget commitments.

For Montenegro and Albania, the October conferences therefore take place at a pivotal point in the accession process.

Both governments are moving through the technical stages of membership negotiations while the EU is still determining how its next enlargement will operate.

The outcome will depend not only on their progress towards meeting accession conditions, but also on whether the existing 27 member states can agree on the institutional changes required for a larger Union.