Prime Minister Edi Rama has suggested that the protests held against the government may not stem solely from the dissatisfaction of students and citizens, but also from foreign interference. As an argument, he cited a drone carrying explosives that, according to him, was targeting the Prime Minister’s Office.
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Professor Enver Bytyçi, speaking to “Bota sot,” rejected the prime minister’s approach, saying that Rama has long linked the protests to foreign influence. According to him, public anger has intensified, particularly among students, while recent developments can no longer be considered merely protests, but rather a revolt against the government.
Bytyçi recalls that, since the protests against Rama began in early June, the prime minister has repeatedly spoken of a “foreign hand.” Initially, according to him, Rama accused Greece, after Greek media were the first to report on the “Flamingo Revolution” against the Albanian government. He later abandoned that theory and shifted the blame to the Iranians, intending to use the claim to position himself on the side of the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran. According to Bytyçi, this attempt also failed, and Rama remained silent for a period.
“Today is the seventh day of the revolt. What is happening this week is no longer a protest, but a revolt, because the government and the prime minister did not listen to the calls of the 135-day protest. Students in particular have joined this revolt, disappointed by the failure of the 2018 student protest. For six consecutive days, Edi Rama has spoken about what he calls foreign interference. In fact, the interior minister reacted before him, declaring: ‘We know much more than I am saying today.’ This rhetoric continues, perhaps in the hope that it will influence those who have risen up. But what is the truth?” he said.
The professor also rules out the possibility that Serbia has a role in the protests against Edi Rama. He argues that Belgrade has no reason to work to oust a prime minister who, in his view, has previously supported regional initiatives linked to Serbia.
Bytyçi cites 1997 as an example, when, according to reports at the time in the Serbian parliament, Serbia had made millions of dollars available to destabilize Albania. Greece also intervened during that period, as the revolt in the south was exploited by Northern Epirus circles seeking to impose a form of autonomy in the south of the country, but the project failed. According to him, Slobodan Milošević believed that a destabilized Albania would create greater opportunities for the subjugation of Kosovo. Nevertheless, Bytyçi says that the destabilization of 1997 became a source of strength for the resistance of Albanians in Kosovo.
“To think that Serbia is intervening even today to support the protests against Edi Rama’s government is naive. As the FAZ journalist Martens has said, Rama is the best prime minister of Albania for Serbia since the time of Nikola Pašić, that is, since 1912. Why would Belgrade invest in bringing down its own man at the head of the Tirana executive?” he said.
According to Bytyçi, over these 13 years Rama has supported initiatives that, in his view, have served Serbian interests regarding Kosovo, including the creation of New Yugoslavia, the partition of Kosovo and the Open Balkan project. He also mentions April 22, 2021, when Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić called on Albanians to vote for Edi Rama in the April 25 elections, warning that otherwise Berisha’s nationalists would take power. For this reason, Bytyçi says he sees no change that would make Serbia interested in Rama’s removal today.
Speaking about other external factors, Bytyçi says that, if the scenario of Serbia’s involvement is ruled out, then the idea of Russian interest in the unrest in Tirana also does not hold. He mentions a statement by Alexander Dugin, which some media outlets in Tirana interpreted as Moscow’s support for the protests, but which, according to him, was merely an observation. Bytyçi recalls that Dugin is the contemporary ideologue of the “Russian World” theory and an adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The professor believes that the dissatisfaction is mainly linked to the way Rama has managed his political alliances. According to him, the prime minister has continually changed partners and used one ally to move closer to that ally’s opponent, always with the aim of securing support and remaining in power as long as possible. Bytyçi claims that this behavior has created opponents, but not enemies of Albania; according to him, they are opposed to Edi Rama.
Bytyçi adds that the “Soros dynasty,” which he considers to have previously been Rama’s greatest friend, may also have distanced itself from him. He links this to the prime minister’s efforts to move closer to Donald Trump’s inner circle, saying that Rama sacrificed his relationship with Soros for his own political interests. According to him, this has led the prime minister to confront both Soros and Donald Trump, who would not support a figure who changes his position according to his interests.
“The certain conclusion is that Edi Rama’s enemy is Edi Rama himself. No external factors are needed to create hatred toward the prime minister of Albania. He has become a hated figure because, for 13 years, he has humiliated and raped his own people. Today he has turned into a dictator trying to present himself as a victim,” Bytyçi concluded in comments to the newspaper.
