Tirana is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills, with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea in the distance. It is among the wettest and sunniest cities in Europe, with 2,544 hours of sun per year.
Futboll Klub Partizani is an Albanian professional football club based in Tirana, that competes in the Kategoria Superiore. Founded in 1946, the club was historically affiliated to the Albanian army. Partizani's home ground is the newly built stadium at Partizani Complex. The club also uses Arena Kombëtare also known as Air Albania stadium for matches in European competitions and major domestic football derbies in Albania.
Sport in Albania revolves mostly around team sports, such as football, basketball, volleyball and handball. Other sports includes boxing, weightlifting, tennis, swimming, judo, karate, athletics, table tennis, badminton, rugby, cricket, and chess. Football in particular has seen a rapid transformation, with the Albania national football team making its debut at the 1964 UEFA European Football Championship. The national football team also qualified for the 2016 UEFA European Football Championship. Many Albanian athletes have also achieved significant success and have won European and Mediterranean titles in numerous sports during the years, such as wrestling, football, athletics and weightlifting. Albanian athletes have won a total 49 medals for Albania in 8 different Mediterranean sports.
Albin Kurti is a Kosovar Albanian politician who has been serving as Prime Minister of Kosovo since 2021, having previously held the office from February to June 2020. He came to prominence in 1997 as the vice-president of the University of Pristina student union, and a main organizer of non-violent student demonstrations of 1997 and 1998. Kurti then worked in Adem Demaçi's office when the latter became the political representative of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). Kurti has been a member of the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo since 2010 in three consecutive legislatures.
Getoar Selimi, also known as Geasy or Ghetto Geasy, is a Kosovo-Albanian rapper, singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Pristina, Selimi found prominence in the Albanian-speaking Balkans as a member of the musical group Tingulli 3nt beginning in 1996.
Arben Minga was an Albanian professional footballer, who played as a striker and later in his final years as a centre-back.
KB Tirana are an Albanian professional basketball team based in Tiranë, which is the basketball branch of SK Tirana. They compete in the Albanian Basketball Superleague and in the Liga Unike. The club plays its home domestic games at the Farie Hoti Sports Palace, and they play their international games at the Asllan Rusi Sports Palace.
The Clock Tower of Tirana, was built in 1822 in Tirana, Albania by Et'hem bey Mollaj, a Bejtexhinj poet who also finished the Et'hem Bey Mosque next to the clock tower. Watchmaster Ismail Tufina was the first to assemble the Tirana clock mechanism in 1822. It is a monument of culture of first category, approved on 24 May 1948.
Bujar Faik Nishani was an Albanian politician. He served as the president of Albania from 24 July 2012 to 24 July 2017.
The Tirana coat of arms, also known as the Shield of Tirana, is the coat of arms of Tirana, features a shield with a clock tower and lion beneath a castle. The coat of arms was approved by the city council on November 14, 2000. Based on the principles of the blazoning it features Per pale Gules and Azure, dexter a Clock Tower Argent, sinister a lion rampant Argent, in chief a fleur-de-lis Or. Above the shield, a representation of Tirana Castle proper.
Erion Veliaj is an Albanian politician currently serving as the Mayor of Tirana. Stemming from a civil society activism organization as the leader of MJAFT!, Veliaj joined the ranks of the Socialist Party of Albania in 2011, when he was appointed Secretary for Youth and Immigration.
The Berlin Process is an intergovernmental cooperation initiative linked to the future enlargement of the European Union.
Albania–Germany relations are the bilateral relations between Albania and Germany.
The 2022 EU–Western Balkans summit was the fourth edition of the European Union–Western Balkans summit held on 6 December 2022 in Tirana, Albania. Hosted by the Albanian Prime Minister, Edi Rama, the summit brought together heads of state and government from the Western Balkan nations, including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia, alongside other EU representatives. Amid the setting of the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War, it underscored the union's commitment to strengthening its political, economic, and security cooperation with the region. Among the central themes of the discussions was the union's support for the region's integration, particularly through the alignment of the Western Balkans with EU standards. The Tirana Declaration, one of the summit's key results, reaffirmed the EU's dedication to the region's EU accession process, while highlighting the demand for political and institutional reforms and democratic principles.
