Greece Freezes Out Albania Over Greek Minority Land Seizures
Greece's Foreign Ministry has put the full weight of its bilateral grievances with Albania on the table, following a violent incident in Svërnica that left a Greek citizen injured. Athens used the episode to formally raise rule of law, European Union standards, and the property rights of the Greek National Minority in a diplomatic statement that went well beyond a routine protest.
The skepticism inside the ministry was real. Officials were not certain whether the unrest in Svërnica, which erupted over a planned development project linked to Prime Minister Edi Rama's government, directly involved land claimed by minority members or was a broader local backlash against the investment scheme. Part of the area has been classified as having special environmental significance.
Athens reminded Tirana that EU accession is not guaranteed, and that the property file must be resolved.
The property issue is already the sharpest thorn in Greece-Albania relations, particularly in the south around Himara, where ethnic Greeks have fought for years to hold onto land they cannot fully document, largely because the necessary title deeds were never issued to them after decommunization. Athens chose this moment to remind Tirana that EU accession is not guaranteed, and that the property file must be resolved.
Adding a volatile dimension to the story is the apparent involvement of American capital in the Svërnica development, with reports pointing to Jared Kushner, son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump. Albania's anti-corruption court, SPAK, has meanwhile opened an investigation into how these zones were included in the government's development plan.
MEP Frendi Belerith, who spent months in an Albanian prison before his release, brought the issue directly to the European Parliament, citing interventions on land whose ownership status is disputed and which minority members claim as theirs.
Greek opposition leader Alexis Tsipras also entered the fray, exchanging public messages with Rama after the Greek Police made an announcement on the incident. A separate parliamentary demand came from PASOK MP Michalis Katrinis, who called on Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis to appear before the closed-door Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee to explain the findings of a report into what Katrinis called the suspicious entry of a drone into Greek territorial waters. Committee chair Dora Bakoyannis backed the request.
