Suspect Albanian waste shipment sampled for analysis: prosecutors

Experts in Albania have begun taking samples from a shipment of waste that was returned to the country months ago over claims it contained toxic chemicals, prosecutors said Friday. The waste left Albania in July 2024 in more than a hundred...

Unprepared for Transition to Smart Agriculture

Albania remains the most agricultural country in the Western Balkans, but at the same time, the least prepared for the transition to smart agriculture. According to the recently published report "Skilling up the Western Balkans Agri-Food Sector"...

Belgium is becoming a narco-state, warns judge

Belgium is becoming a narco-state with drug kingpins rivalling the police for control of the country, a senior judge has warned. An investigative judge from Antwerp has admitted that the judiciary was powerless to protect citizens from the...

Iran's school for cyberspies could've used a few more lessons in preventing breaches

Iran's school for state-sponsored cyberattackers admits it suffered a breach exposing the names and other personal information of its associates and students. The Ravin Academy was established in 2019, ostensibly to train individuals in all facets...

Kosovo businessman probed in Albania airport deal

TIRANA, Oct. 15 (TemA) — Albania’s prosecutors have opened a criminal investigation into Kosovo businessman Behgjet Pacolli over the construction of Vlora Airport, a major infrastructure project on the country’s southern coast. Pacolli, his...

Tirana to host EU–Western Balkans meeting

TIRANA, Oct. 10 (TemA) – Tirana will host the EU–Western Balkans Investment Forum on Oct. 13–14, bringing together regional leaders, EU officials and international investors. Prime Minister Edi Rama called the event “a historic moment” for the...

Baltic Event Co-Production Market 2025 Announces Selected Projects

For the second year, the selection also includes films aimed at youth and children. Since its launch in 2005, the Baltic Event Co-Production Market has served as a key meeting point for feature films in development seeking coproducers, financiers,...

IMF Cuts Albania’s 2025 GDP Growth Forecast to 3.4%

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Tuesday it has decreased Albania’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth projection for 2025 to 3.4%, from 3.8% in its previous forecast. IMF has, however, increased Albania’s 2026 GDP growth forecast by...

Albania sets plan for 90-day oil reserve

TIRANA, Oct. 9 (TemA) – Albania has put to public consultation a draft law to create a state oil reserve covering up to 90 days of supply for use in shortages. The target is at least 90 days of net import averages or 61 days of domestic...

EU-Montenegro Investment Conference: 14 partnerships, MoUs signed for energy, sustainable projects

The two-day conference, titled Smart Growth, Green Future: Accelerating Investment in Montenegro, was opened today in Luštica, near Tivat, by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the Prime Minister of Montenegro,...

The Baltic Event Co-Production Market builds new bridges between regions

14/10/2025 - Fifteen brand-new projects will be competing for the Eurimages Co-Production Development Award, with Catalonia taking centre stage as this year’s focus Cold Sun by Gentian Koçi The Baltic Event Co-Production Market, an integral part...

Reform needed to reinforce the legitimacy of ISDS in resolving societal challenges

Introduction In recent years, international trade and investment have continued to flourish despite global economic uncertainties. Global trade hit a record US$33 trillion in 2024, increasing by 3.7 per cent from 2023.[1] The Association of...

Italy-Albania migrant deal: Millions spent, few results

“I found myself in a maximum-security prison without ever having spent a day in prison in my life,” Mustafa recalls. He perfectly remembers the day he entered the migrant detention centre, opened by Italy in Gjadër, Albania. The sound of the gate...

Albania joins SEPA for euro payments

TIRANA, Oct. 7 (TemA) — Albania on Tuesday joined SEPA, the Single Euro Payments Area, aligning euro transfers with 41 European countries under domestic-style rules. The Bank of Albania said all banks are live, promising faster, cheaper and safer...

Albania’s EU ties strongest in Balkans

TIRANA, Oct. 7 (TemA) — Albania has the closest economic links to the European Union among Western Balkan states, a Vienna study says. The index ranks Albania ahead of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, North Macedonia and Montenegro. Kosovo lacked...

Albania, Greece; Joint Projects to Promote Circular Economy

The Deputy Minister of National Economy and Finance of Greece, Nikos Papathanasis, has signed funding agreements for two major strategic projects under the Interreg IPA VI-A Cross-Border Cooperation Programme “Greece – Albania 2021–2027”, Trend...

CWP Europe and the European Commission to Advance Renewable Energy in Albania and Montenegro

During the EU-Western Balkans Investment Forum in Tirana, CWP Europe, together with the European Commission (DG ENEST), the Albanian Investment Development Agency, and the Montenegro Investment Promotion Agency, signed a Joint Declaration of...

Enlargement, von der Leyen in Albania to push investment. Tirana “is on the right track towards the EU”

Brussels – Double public appearance in Tirana today (13 October) for Ursula von der Leyen. In the morning, the Commission President held a bilateral meeting with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, praising him for the Balkan country’s progress...

Bank of Albania Purchases €914 Million to Curb Lek’s Appreciation

The Governor of the Bank of Albania, Gent Sejko, presented the 2024 Annual Report before the Parliamentary Committee on Economy, highlighting the country’s main economic developments. He emphasized that Albania’s economic outlook remains positive....

CWP Europe gets European Commission’s backing for renewables projects in Albania, Montenegro

The declaration of support for CWP Europe’s projects was signed during the EU-Western Balkans Investment Forum in Albania’s capital, Tirana, in the presence of Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama and European Commission President Ursula von der...