Rama rules out resigning over resort protests

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama has ruled out resigning over protests against a planned resort on the country’s Adriatic coast.

The project is planned for Zvërnec, near the Vjosa-Narta protected area.

Critics say it could damage one of Albania’s most sensitive coastal zones.

Rama told Socialist Party lawmakers that no protest crowd, “even if the whole planet gathered”, would force his government to step back.

He said the backlash grew because the project is linked to Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of US President Donald Trump.

Rama also blamed social media, foreign interests and political opponents for turning the dispute into a wider campaign against his government.

He warned his party that the row was “only the beginning” and told them to prepare for more pressure.