Last September, when Albania’s prime minister, Edi Rama, addressed the UN General Assembly, he decided to publicly display his solidarity with Israel by wearing on his suit a yellow ribbon pin, the symbol of the campaign to free the Israeli hostages still held in Gaza. He was the only foreign leader to do so at that international event.
“Albania stands firm in its position that there is no place for Hamas and its likes in the world we want to live in,” declared Rama from the UN, “there is no moral compass that can relativize and, God forbid, normalize terror and terrorist organizations like Hamas as part of the peace we all want between Israel and Palestine.”
Rare words coming from a man leading a country in which more than 50% of the population are Muslims.
Sixty-year old Rama, who has served as prime minister since 2013, and Albania are considered two of Israel’s closest allies. On April 6 this year, Israel’s president awarded Rama the Presidential Medal of Honor, Israel’s highest civilian decoration, in Jerusalem.
Few foreign leaders receive this decoration. Those who have include former US presidents Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, former German chancellor Angela Merkel, and former Czech president Milos Zeman.
Rama received the decoration in recognition of his steadfast support for Israel following the October 7 massacre, his courageous stance against antisemitism, and his enduring friendship with the Jewish people.
“When the time came to turn words into action,” said President Isaac Herzog at the ceremony to Rama, “you rose to the challenge with courage. In our darkest hour, after the horrible Hamas attack on Israel, you refused to succumb to international pressure. You held fast to your moral compass and expressed deep friendship and vital support for Israel.”
In September, a few days before Rama’s speech at the UN, Herzog was the first Israeli president to visit Albania since the countries established full diplomatic relations in 1991, after the fall of the totalitarian Communist regime in Tirana.
“I don’t think I deserved this honor personally, but as a prime minister of a country that has a golden record in its relation with the Jewish people,” says Rama in an exclusive interview with The Jerusalem Post. “In this sense, the honor is fully deserved. It was a very touching gesture of President Herzog in recognition of the great effort the Albanians made to save Jews in World War II and of the fact that we have always welcomed the Jews, although Albania is a country with a Muslim majority. Albanian Muslims were instrumental in saving Jews during World War II, and thanks to them, first and foremost, Albania is the only country in occupied Europe that ended the war with more Jews than before the war started.”
We meet in his office in central Tirana. On his huge desk, besides official documents, there are ceramic jars filled with pastel pencils and marker pens, and an unfinished drawing. Rama, who is over 2 meters tall, was a known painter and artist before he entered politics and was elected in 2005 to lead the Albanian Socialist Party. On a nearby table stands, among many other personal objects, a colorful hanukkiah, which miraculously survived a devastating earthquake a few years ago.
Rama, the son of a Catholic family, grew up under one of the worst Communist dictatorships in a closed country that considered Israel as an enemy.
“I knew nothing about Israel at the time,” he says. “Israel was considered in Communist Albania as one of the three ‘heads of the devil’ together with the Americans and the Soviets. We didn’t have any knowledge about Israel. ‘Jerusalem’ was, for me, a word that I learned from my grandmother’s Bible, nothing else.
“Later, Albania opened up, and I visited Israel to learn about this incredible place and its history. I also got to know the work and towering figure of the Lubavitcher Rebbe in New York. All these things had their influence on me.”
Albania was a safe haven for Jews during WWII
Rama, like many Albanians – also in neighboring Kosovo and North Macedonia – is very proud of the role Albanians had in saving Jews during World War II despite being under occupation and fighting alongside the Germans.
“On the Albanian side, there is for sure an awareness on this issue,” stresses the prime minister. “On the Jewish side, maybe now there is more awareness of it than in the past, when there was little knowledge on that. One couldn’t say there was no knowledge, but certainly not enough. It is important that people know about it.
“Fighting antisemitism is an old tradition in Albania, and the Albanian people are, in general, very much supportive of this fight and stand against anything that is discriminatory and singles out people because of their religion, origin, color, or other reasons.
“Of course, there is a very strong sentiment among the Albanians regarding the victims of the war in Gaza. As a country, we have been supporting the idea of a two-state solution for a long time now. During this war, we have advocated for constraint and a ceasefire on every occasion in the UN.
“But, on the other hand, I said very clearly from the first day of the war that there cannot be peace and a long-term solution for both peoples with Hamas as part of the picture.”
After October 7, you expressed your unequivocal support of Israel. What does this day symbolize for you?
“It was something that no country and no nation except yours can grasp completely. It’s so horrifying that it is difficult to grasp.
“I find it too easy to lecture Israel from a distance. When you put yourself in the shoes of the people who had to experience this day and go through this torture, having their innocent kids, parents, and relatives taken as hostages, it makes you unable to breathe. I never thought about this day and what followed in terms of your politics or your government, because the closer you scrutinize the attitude of governments, the more you can find reasons to criticize their actions, but, on the other hand, the more mistaken you can be, judging from afar.
“And it is even more disturbing when you see students and illuminated people in the oldest democracies protesting with the most heinous slogans against Israel while waving the LGBT flags, while if there is a hell for the LGBTs, it’s in the Gaza Strip under Hamas.
“It is heartbreaking when you think under what an evil dictatorship the Palestinian people are.”
Hate education against Israel and Jews is not unique to Hamas but could also be found under the Palestinian Authority. Therefore, many Israelis say that after October 7, there can be no two-state solution, since whatever territory Israel will hand over to the Palestinians will be used to attack Israel. Can you understand this position?
“No, because in my view, it’s the burden of those who fight for freedom and democracy and believe in the values of coexistence and the right of all people to have their own home and dignity under the sun to take all the risks when it comes to situations like this.
“Closing oneself to the idea of peaceful coexistence between the Jewish people and the Palestinian people is something that the preachers of terror aspire to.
“It’s not a position that I would personally appreciate to see developing on the Israeli side. Not only would that supply many arguments to all those who try to put both sides, Israel and Hamas, on an equal footing, but it would also undermine the future of Israel itself. Such an attitude is unthinkable for me.
“October 7 was like a culmination of something that had been boiling for a long time. However, the paths of God are infinite, as my grandmother used to say, and sometimes the worst situations are God’s way of opening the path to the best. We are not aware of his intentions.
“I think that seeking peace and working for peace, believing in the good in people, is the obligation of every individual who really believes that we all belong to this world, and it is just what the world needs and what we should stand for.”
Some leaders are thinking about other ways to solve the Arab-Israeli conflict, like US President Donald Trump. Were you surprised when he was quoted as suggesting that Albania would host displaced persons from Gaza?
“It was not an idea made by the American administration, the White House, or President Trump. It was fake news of an Israeli journalist. It was never true and not something I heard from anyone else except for the Israeli media.”
Rama is a champion of Israel-Albania tourism
This spring, direct commercial flights between Israel and Albania were inaugurated by Sundor, a subsidiary of El Al. Rama invited all 140 passengers on the first flight to a kosher dinner, in which he participated. Tourism is one of the many fields in which cooperation between the countries has been tightening in recent years.
“The essence for me is the people-to-people relations between two peoples that once upon a time found themselves together in one of the darkest hours of history and saw in each other the reason to believe in life, in loyalty, and in humanity,” emphasizes Rama. “I think that this is a page of history that not only the Albanians should cherish but the Jewish people as well.
“It’s important for your new generations to come to Albania, to know the Albanians, to know our joint history, which is a very particular history and has meaning for our time since many of the Jewish lives that were saved were saved by Muslims. If Israel exists today, prospers, and grows, it is also thanks to the contribution of Albanians when your people were facing a serious threat of extermination.
“We have only a small Jewish community here today since most of the Albanian Jews left after the fall of Communism and went to Israel,” admits Rama. “So tourism is a very important way to get to know each other.
“Then, of course, there are many things that we can learn from Israel. Israel is for me one of the most incredible cases in history of how a small nation can punch way above its weight, starting from having no home for thousands of years and then, in a short time, becoming the point of reference for so many innovations and other fantastic things in every field.
“I learned from Israel that, in the end, it’s not the natural resources you have which define who you are as a nation, but it is what you know. You innovated, for example, the way to see water. I always say: ‘Look at Israel. It has no water, but it has the best water supply for all its needs. Albania has more water than most of the countries, second after Norway, and we still have water supply problems.’ Israel is a source of knowledge.”
Kosovo, whose main population group is also Albanian, has opened an embassy in Jerusalem in the framework of the Abraham Accords negotiated by the first Trump administration, hence becoming the first Muslim state to have its embassy in the capital of Israel. Will Albania follow?
“For the moment we are preparing to open a representation of the chamber of commerce in Jerusalem, mainly to promote Albania as a tourist destination,” explains Rama. “Later, we will see, step-by-step.
“I want to reiterate that we remain very convinced that Israel should double its efforts to seek peace, despite all the reasons it has to feel discouraged in its search for peace.”
On Iran's threat to the Middle East, Albania
One of those reasons is Iran, which is not only destabilizing the Middle East but tries to do that in the Balkans as well. Do you see the Iranian influence here as a threat?
“Iran is a country with great history and with many talented and intelligent people. Unfortunately, we have been obliged to cut all relations with Iran completely and to kick its representatives out of our country because the regime in Tehran is a regime of assassins. So, I am probably not the right person to ask about Iranian influence in the Balkans, because I am not objective. We are among the few countries that have no relations with Iran, and we are not missing the relations with Iran.
“They were horrible to us because we hosted a few thousand Iranians [members of the Mujahideen e-Khalq opposition group] who were killed systematically in Iraq due to their different opinions about who should rule Iran. We offered them a shelter, not a platform to fight. We are not interested in the fight over who rules in Tehran. But the Iranian regime attacked us in a very ruthless way, trying to wipe out all our digital infrastructure. We survived it.
“When it comes to this kind of situation, democracies facing dictatorships, I believe that democracies shouldn’t lecture the others. But when dictatorships try to undermine our way of life, we have to respond.”
Another country that is striving to expand its influence in the Middle East and the Balkans is Turkey. Not far away from your office stands the magnificent new mosque, financed by Turkey, which is the biggest mosque in the Balkans. Are we witnessing a Turkish Islamist neo-imperialism?
“I would fully disagree with that. The mosque is big and beautiful, but it is the only one in Albania which Turkey financed. Since there has been a big buzz around it, it seems [as though] Turkey is pouring money into Albania or into our region to build mosques. It is not the case. Yes, the Turks are very caring about Ottoman cultural heritage in the Balkans. They have programs for that cause, and it’s good since it helps the different countries to restore the Ottoman heritage. But it is not more than that.
“I have known President Erdogan for a long time, and we are very close. I have never heard him say things that would make me think of an imperial vision of Turkish foreign relations. He is very respectful of Albania and its choices. We agree on many things. I think that Turkey has been treated unfairly more than once by the West, not only by the Europeans. Having said that, we also have different points of view on some issues, Hamas for example. However, it has never created any situation between him and me that made me feel that he acts like a boss trying to lecture his servant. He is really a loyal, honest, and direct person. With him, you get what you see.
“The Middle East and Turkey is another story, but I feel that I don’t have all the information that would allow me to talk about it. I know that relations with Israel have been very bumpy lately, to put it mildly.”
Most Albanians became Muslim under Ottoman rule. What is modern Albania’s connection with Islam?
“I have a very simple approach – politicians and leaders should not allow themselves to get drowned in history. History is a very complicated business. Politics is complicated enough to include within it history as well. My mantra is to look to the past with the eyes of the future and not to look to the future with the eyes of the past. If you look at the past with the eyes of the future, it becomes a blessing.
“Take Islam. It is a beautiful culture and is not at all a source to promote and exercise terror. We spoke before about knowledge. A lot of knowledge comes from the holy books. When you read the holy books, do you see a difference between Moses, Muhammad, and Jesus? Is one of them not related to the others?
“We are projecting now to build in Albania, outside Tirana, a big park named the Park of Faith. I want to plant in this park all the trees, fruits, vegetables, and flowers that are mentioned in the holy books. The park would practically be a space related to God but not imposing God on anyone, explaining to its visitors about religions through nature and traditions. For example, how is water being used by Jews, Muslims, and Christians.
“The more we work on this park we see that everything is coming from the same God. The problem starts when people play God.”
Albania is a member of NATO and a candidate to join the European Union. Both organizations are facing serious crises nowadays. What future do you see for NATO and the EU? Are they about to break or to get stronger?
“For me, crises are opportunities. Many people believe that Donald Trump is doing bad things to the world. He himself said that God saved him to make America great again. I think he told us only half of the story. The other half, I believe, is that God saved him to wake Europe up, to make Europe look at the world with refreshed eyes, to be less self-referential and to think of all the tools Europe needs in order to survive in the new world of big powers. The question is: will Europe remain a big power or not? If Trump had not won, the inertia of self-complacency could have been devastating.
“Will what I wish happen? I don’t know, but I very much believe that Europe will come out much stronger from all this, and Europe needed it because it was going through a period that looked more and more like the management of its own decline.
“I don’t think that Europe and the US will split ways. Maybe the modalities of the coexistence will be different. For a while. However, as one of the greatest minds in politics, Henry Kissinger, said: without Europe, America is an island, and without America, Europe is a peninsula. Both need to be together and work together. However, Europe has to diversify its portfolio.”
And Russia?
“First of all, Russia is part of Europe, not Asia. Russia has always looked to the West. What is happening now is a big tragedy. But at the end, it will be a small part of history. The future of Russia is in Europe. I have no doubt. How and when – that is another question.”
A life outside of politics
You are one of the longest-serving prime ministers in Europe today. You are running again in an election that will take place in May. In your life, you have been a basketball player, a painter, and an artist. You said yourself that politics are very complicated. Do you sometimes have second thoughts about your decision to choose a political career?
“I started painting when I was three years old, and I have never stopped, as you can see.
“Basketball came into my life for two reasons: first of all, I was tall, and in Communist times, those who were tall had to play basketball. Secondly, I suffered from asthma, and my parents thought that basketball would help me. It did, enormously. I reached the national team, but I was not one of its stars.
“I didn’t choose politics. Politics chose me. It was destiny.
“When I was nominated as a minister of culture, I never thought I would end up in the office of the prime minister or any other office. Until then, I was an artist, a professor, a total free spirit. I didn’t like the state and its institutions. I was the total opposite of what I am supposed to be today. But things happen, you know.”