Latest news with #EdiRama
Al Bawaba
07-06-2025
- Politics
- Al Bawaba
Israel recovers body of Thai hostage in special operation in Gaza
Published June 7th, 2025 - 09:14 GMT ALBAWABA - Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama welcomed Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni with a playful and theatrical gesture on Friday as she arrived in the Albanian capital to attend the sixth summit of the European Political Community, an informal forum that brings together 47 European states. Rama put down his umbrella and knelt down in front of Meloni as she exited her vehicle, his hands joined together in a gesture reminiscent of prayer. Meloni responded with a lighthearted remark after seeing the scenario on video: "You need to stop that, Edi." Later, she joked with reporters, "He only does it to be as tall as me," mocking their obvious height difference—Meloni is 1.63 meters tall, while Rama is over two meters. This is not the first time that Rama has greeted Meloni in this way. As a birthday gift, Rama knelt down in front of her in Abu Dhabi a few months ago and handed her a scarf. The two presidents' close political and personal ties are shown by their recent bilateral cooperation. With support from the Italian government, two controversial migrant processing facilities have been constructed in Albania: a repatriation facility in Gjader and an unutilized facility in Shengjin. Meloni has said that during her visit, she will not be visiting either place. The visit comes only days after Albania hosted the 2025 Giro d'Italia, Italy's premier cycling event, sparking media speculation about a political favor between the two nations. Even while no official link has been confirmed, the symbolic move highlights the expanding political and cultural relations between Tirana and Rome. © 2000 - 2025 Al Bawaba (
Bloomberg
06-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
New Airport Gives Kushner's Albania Plans a Boost
Hi, this is Andrea Dudik in Prague. Welcome to our weekly newsletter on what's shaping economics and investments from the Baltic Sea to the Balkans. You can subscribe here. Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama promised to turn his country, one of Europe's poorest, into a tourism magnet. The lure of cheaper prices and a taste of the unknown compared with say Greece or Croatia has worked well so far, driving visitor arrivals to a record last year.
Al Bawaba
01-06-2025
- Business
- Al Bawaba
Gaza truce fails over unexpected Israeli Obstacles
ALBAWABA - Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama welcomed Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni with a playful and theatrical gesture on Friday as she arrived in the Albanian capital to attend the sixth summit of the European Political Community, an informal forum that brings together 47 European states. Rama put down his umbrella and knelt down in front of Meloni as she exited her vehicle, his hands joined together in a gesture reminiscent of prayer. Meloni responded with a lighthearted remark after seeing the scenario on video: "You need to stop that, Edi." Later, she joked with reporters, "He only does it to be as tall as me," mocking their obvious height difference—Meloni is 1.63 meters tall, while Rama is over two meters. This is not the first time that Rama has greeted Meloni in this way. As a birthday gift, Rama knelt down in front of her in Abu Dhabi a few months ago and handed her a scarf. The two presidents' close political and personal ties are shown by their recent bilateral cooperation. With support from the Italian government, two controversial migrant processing facilities have been constructed in Albania: a repatriation facility in Gjader and an unutilized facility in Shengjin. Meloni has said that during her visit, she will not be visiting either place. بعد أسابيع من التفاوض الجاد والمسؤول مع الموفد الأميركي، توصلنا إلى صيغة ورقة مقبولة تتماشى مع الحد الأدنى من الأهداف الوطنية ومتطلبات حماية شعبنا، ووافق الموفد الأميركي على عرضها على الجانب الإسرائيلي. إلا أن الاحتلال رفض الورقة، وطلب من الأميركي عرضها علينا كمقترح نهائي — محمود مرداوي (@AAlmrdawy21173) June 1, 2025 The visit comes only days after Albania hosted the 2025 Giro d'Italia, Italy's premier cycling event, sparking media speculation about a political favor between the two nations. Even while no official link has been confirmed, the symbolic move highlights the expanding political and cultural relations between Tirana and Rome.
Daily Mail
31-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Keir Starmer's plans for 'return hubs' to take migrants from the UK could be hijacked by Russian spies, MI6 warns
Sir Keir Starmer 's plan for 'return hubs' to take migrants from the UK could be hijacked by Russian spies, the intelligence services have warned. The Prime Minister is eyeing up deals with Balkan countries, and some in Africa, to house failed asylum seekers. But MI6 have warned the Government that proximity to Russia opens up the scheme to infiltration by Kremlin agents. Opening facilities and putting infrastructure into such places would put Britain within 'a Russian sphere of influence', The Times reported. Despite this, Labour is still looking to strike deals with the likes of Serbia, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. Sir Keir had hoped Albania would join the scheme but was left embarrassed earlier this month when he travelled there, only to be rebuffed by PM Edi Rama. A Government source told the newspaper: 'You'd be planting a prime bit of British interest, British real estate, right into an area where Russia has the ability to control and influence much more than other areas in the world. 'The security view was that it was not sensible or viable. It was based on the evidence that we've seen Russia being willing to use migration as a vehicle to exploit.' The Foreign Office said it would not provide a 'running commentary' on the plans and declined to comment further. British spies are said to be alarmed by growing Russian influence across the western Balkans, warning that the region's deep ties to Moscow pose a significant risk to UK interests. All six western Balkan nations—once part of communist Yugoslavia—are seen as vulnerable to Kremlin interference, according to a senior security source. The source explained that Russia has countless levers it can pull, whether it's through cyber attacks, bribery, embedding allies in government, or pushing propaganda to shift public thinking, Moscow knows how to destabilise. They went on to say there's a serious threat from organised criminal groups tied to Russia, and real questions about whether the region's police forces can cope. MI6 is particularly concerned about Serbia, where President Aleksandar Vucic has built close ties with Vladimir Putin. He's visited Moscow several times in the past year, most recently appearing alongside the Russian president at the Victory Day parade. Officials have also raised alarms over Serbia's visa-free access for Russian citizens, and reports that arms shipments have passed through the country unimpeded. Despite the warnings, Britain has begun informal talks about migrant return deals with several Balkan countries, including Kosovo. Kosovan President Vjosa Osmani has said her country is 'open to discussions' about taking failed UK asylum seekers. But legal experts say the plan is fraught with challenges. Several European countries still refuse to recognise Kosovo as independent, and it is not a signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights, making any agreement legally and diplomatically complicated.
Telegraph
28-05-2025
- General
- Telegraph
When you're 6ft 5in, everything is a concussion hazard. The world wasn't built for us
When Edi Rama, the 6ft 7in prime minister of Albania, was pictured next to Keir Starmer two weeks ago, the newspaper headlines used words such as 'towering' and 'dominant'. No one thought to ask Mr Rama how his lower back was or whether he'd had the misfortune of looking at the tops of other people's fridges that day. (Honestly, they're gross; get a little kitchen step, you'll see. Regular antibacterial spray won't cut it, either – you'll need a grease remover.) As a 6ft 5in man, I dread to think how Mr Rama, who presumably meets dozens of people every week, copes with meet-and-greets. I'm just a hermit freelance writer, two inches shorter than he is, and even I have to endure this exact conversation every few days with someone I don't know: 'How tall are you, then?' 'About 6ft 5in.' 'Gosh.' 'Yes, but I do have my heels on, ha ha.' 'Ha ha.' 'Ha ha haaa...' Even without the not-so-small talk, being vertically gifted isn't always the gift that shorter people assume it is. There are aches and awkwardness, bumps and badly designed clothes, and it all starts as soon as we wake up. Morning has broken Tall people begin our days unfolding our limbs and cracking our joints. We duck under nipple-height showerheads and dry off with miniskirt towels. Then we arch in front of mirrors that don't fit our full frame and check that none of the clothes we have on has shrunk in the wash. If I pick out a T-shirt that's lost even an inch in length, there's a real risk of belly hair exposure in the hours ahead. That can't be allowed to happen. Not again. Fashion in general is a minefield for vertical one-percenters like me. 'Ankle length' trousers strike mid-calf and cropped jackets tickle the ribcage. Off-the-peg tailoring is nigh-on impossible, and even so-called 'big and tall' ranges rarely measure up. And it's important to look good because, frankly, there's more competition than ever. Research suggests that big men may be getting bigger. In January, scientists published a paper in a journal called Biology Letters, which showed that men have grown twice as much over the past century as women. The paper's title is quite something: 'The sexy and formidable male body: men's height and weight are condition-dependent, sexually selected traits.' Its authors speculate that women's sexual preferences may have driven a trend for taller and more muscular men. In other words, the reason that I bang my head so often may be because 20th-century women found lanky men irresistible. In research terms, it makes a certain amount of sense. Height is associated with attraction and 'dominance' in social psychology. Previous research has found that heterosexual women have a preference for men who are taller than they are, while other work suggests that tall men earn more than short guys with the same qualifications. Facing the day How it all stacks up to the experience of men like me might be another thing. If I'm anything to go by, tall men are gangly, awkward and accident-prone, as the angular light fittings in my in-laws' living room will testify. I've hit my head on those more times than I remember and I do the same thing everywhere else. The handles on the bus, the neighbours' unkempt foliage, the gate to our local park, which is designed to keep out larger vehicles but is positioned low enough to present me with yet another concussion hazard. So forget dominance; the world wasn't built for us. Need some more examples? I have many. Cars are claustrophobic. Mirrors are hung too low. Airline seats are a nightmare. Shirts never stay tucked. Canal boat holidays? They're completely out of the question. Tall people also live in a state of constant hypervigilance, alert to the minute-by-minute threat of a rogue umbrella spoke or low-flying pigeon. I once had a bad experience with an out-of-control rotary washing line. A gust of wind caught a bedsheet and as the whole thing swung around, one of the arms squelched right into my eyeball. Short kings may have to crane their necks every once in a while but they're rarely troubled by this eye-level menace. Don't get me wrong, there are benefits of being tall. The one people often mention is the ability to reach stuff – but honestly, being able to grab things from the top shelf at B&Q doesn't feel like a particularly big win in the genetic lottery. People also assume you're athletic. I grew up in south Wales, where friends told me I'd make a good second row in the rugby team (never happened; too scrawny). When I moved to London, I worked at a fitness magazine, but never came close to whipping my top off for the front cover. Aside from being the GOAT at piggy in the middle, I'm more Stephen Merchant than Martin Johnson. High jinks I do always have a good view at gigs. I can usually spot my children in a crowd and they can spot me. Nobody's ever picked a fight with me, as far as I can remember, although I do get passive-aggressive tuts from the people sitting behind me at the theatre. (I am sorry, but if it's any consolation, I'm curled up like a prawn for the whole performance and my spine is dangerously compressed.) You do end up a little self-conscious about your height. Of course you do. I call it tall man syndrome. We all know that a vocal subsection of short men overcompensate for their pint-sized stature with bullish behaviour. Well, I do the opposite. My friends will tell you I'm the least aggressive person they know. I refuse to dance because every movement is exaggerated by my ridiculous wingspan. I won't ever push past you at a busy train station because there's a reasonable chance I'll knock you over. I would like to go unseen, but incognito mode isn't among my user settings. People always see you coming. The long goodnight Have you ever seen a 6ft 5in man in the foetal position? It's absurd, I promise you. There's just too much anatomy, and it's all squished together and grotesquely arranged, like a murder victim stuffed into a suitcase. I know this, reader, because I was that overgrown foetus – every night, in my own bed – for the first 15 years of my adult life. At 6ft 5in, I do not fit comfortably into many beds – and none in the various rental properties I lived in as a younger man. My feet either dangle over the end or I lie diagonally, much to the outrage of my wife. When there's no other option, I tuck my knees up pathetically and fall asleep looking like that weird Voldemort creature at the end of the last Harry Potter film. When we bought our house 10 years ago, I insisted on a super-king bed. The vast mattress, a full 2m (or 6ft 6in) in length, was a revelation. I've slept wonderfully ever since. And yes, once or twice in the intervening years, I may have referred to myself as a super king, but who could blame me? I am quite literally above average. There are also more serious consequences of being lanky. Researchers find that tall people have a greater risk of some cancers because, with more cells in our bodies, there are more chances of a dodgy mutation. There are also irregular heartbeats, bad backs, skin and bone infections. On the plus side, tall people are less likely to suffer coronary heart disease, high blood pressure or high cholesterol. And that's it. Being tall has its ups and downs, just like everyone else. Yes, there are times when I am forced to bow – again, literally – to the average-sized tyranny of the modern world. But I'm a big boy. I can take it.
