logo
God saved Trump to give Europe last chance to get its act together, says Albanian prime minister

God saved Trump to give Europe last chance to get its act together, says Albanian prime minister

Independent24-05-2025
Donald Trump coming to power has given Europe a 'last chance get its act together', the prime minister of Albania has said.
Edi Rama, who has just secured his fourth term as prime minister of Albania, warned Europe had been 'sleepwalking' and should use Trump's presidency as an opportunity to 'become a major power' on the world stage.
Referencing Trump's comments that God saved his life 'to make America great again ', Rama said: 'The other half of the truth is that God saved him to give a last chance to Europe to get its act together. To not simply manage decline, but to change and take the opportunity to become a major power in a space where other powers are emerging.
'Everyone else is making the unthinkable except Europe, who is so far doing more of the same.'
Rama spoke at a panel at Wales' Hay Festival on Saturday, alongside British journalist and broadcaster Misha Glenny, Tony Blair's longtime aide Alastair Campbell and award-winning historian and author Anne Applebaum.
Discussing the implications of Trump's second term as US president for Europe, Rama said: 'Europe is sleepwalking. It's a big opportunity and its a moment to completely turn the tides and think big.'
He added: 'Preaching and talking about the moral high ground and dismissing everything else will not help us to find a way to be reborn out of this situation and to reshape ourselves. [Which we need to do] if we don't want to see Europe shrinking and be rendered an irrelevant force whilst others are emerging.'
Hay Festival, which is spread over 11 days, is set in Hay-on-Wye, the idyllic and picturesque 'Town of Books'. The lineup includes Mary Trump, Michael Sheen, Jameela Jamil, and more.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Ukrainian man arrested in Italy over Nord Stream pipeline attacks
Ukrainian man arrested in Italy over Nord Stream pipeline attacks

Reuters

time21 minutes ago

  • Reuters

Ukrainian man arrested in Italy over Nord Stream pipeline attacks

BERLIN/MILAN, Aug 21 (Reuters) - A Ukrainian man was arrested at a holiday bungalow in Italy on suspicion of coordinating attacks on three Nord Stream gas pipelines in 2022, officials said on Thursday, a breakthrough in an episode that sharpened tensions between Russia and the West. Described by both Moscow and the West as an act of sabotage, the explosions largely severed Russian gas supplies to Europe, prompting a major escalation in the Ukraine conflict and squeezing energy supplies on the continent. No one has taken responsibility for the blasts and Ukraine has denied any role. The arrest comes just as Kyiv is engaged in fraught diplomatic discussions with the United States over how to end thewar in Ukraine without giving away major concessions and swathes of its own territory to Russia. "Politically we are firmly on Ukraine's side and will continue to be so," said Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig when asked if the arrest would affect Berlin's ties to Kyiv. "What is important for me is that Germany is a country of law, and crimes in our jurisdiction are fully investigated." The suspect, identified only as Serhii K. under German privacy laws, was part of a group of people who planted devices on the pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea, a statement from the prosecutor's office said. He and his accomplices had set off from Rostock on Germany's northeastern coast in a sailing yacht to carry out the attack, it said. The vessel had been rented from a German company with the help of forged identity documents via middlemen, it added. Authorities acted on a European arrest warrant for the suspect, who faces charges of collusion to cause an explosion, anti-constitutional sabotage and destruction of important structures. An official in the Ukrainian president's office said he could not comment as it was not clear who had been arrested. The official reiterated Ukraine's denial of any role in the blasts. Successive Ukrainian governments have seen the pipelines as a symbol of, and vehicle for, Russia's hold over European energy supplies that Kyiv argued made it hard to act against Moscow ever since Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014. The Wall Street Journal reported that the suspect was a retired captain in Ukraine's armed forces and previously served in Ukraine's security service SBU, as well as in an elite unit that defended Kyiv in the early months of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. The officer purportedly headed a team of two soldiers and four civilian divers covertly recruited by a special Ukrainian military unit to lay explosives that damaged the undersea pipelines, the WSJ said, citing investigators. German prosecutors declined to comment on the WSJ report. Carabinieri officers arrested the suspect overnight in San Clemente on Italy's Adriatic coast, where he was supposed to spend a few days with his family. "Once his presence had been verified, the Carabinieri surrounded the bungalow and launched a raid, during which the man surrendered without resistance," a statement by the Carabinieri said, adding the suspect was 49 years old. A police official told Reuters the suspect was arrested because, when providing documents at a hotel check-in, an alert flagging he was wanted popped up at the police headquarters, which dispatched a Carabinieri police patrol. In September 2022, one of the two lines of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline was damaged by mysterious blasts, along with both lines of Nord Stream 1 that carried Russian gas to Europe. Moscow, without providing evidence, blamed Western sabotage for the blasts, which cut off most Russian gas supplies to the lucrative European market. The U.S. denied having anything to do with the attacks. The Washington Post and Germany's Der Spiegel magazine have previously said the team that carried out the attack was put together by a former Ukrainian intelligence officer, who denied involvement. In January 2023, Germany raided a ship that it said may have been used to transport explosives and told the United Nations it believed trained divers could have attached devices to the pipelines at about 70 to 80 metres deep. The boat, leased in Germany via a Poland-registered company, contained traces of octogen, the same explosive that was found at the underwater blast sites, according to the investigations by Germany, Denmark and Sweden. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 triggered Europe's deadliest conflict in 80 years, in which analysts say more than 1 million people have been killed or injured.

Robbie Williams bans children from having phones, describing them as a ‘drug'
Robbie Williams bans children from having phones, describing them as a ‘drug'

The Independent

time21 minutes ago

  • The Independent

Robbie Williams bans children from having phones, describing them as a ‘drug'

has banned his children from having mobile phones, calling the devices 'a drug' and a form of 'abuse'. Speaking to ITV on Wednesday (20 August), the former Take That singer said he will ensure his children remain without phones 'as long as humanely possible'. He said it's 'tough' if his children complain, adding that the internet for him as a 51-year-old is "corrosive". 'How can I give this drug to a 12-year-old? How can I give this drug to a seven-year-old? It's abuse.'

Helen Flanagan shares struggle to calm four-year-old son running wild at 11:30pm
Helen Flanagan shares struggle to calm four-year-old son running wild at 11:30pm

The Independent

time21 minutes ago

  • The Independent

Helen Flanagan shares struggle to calm four-year-old son running wild at 11:30pm

Helen Flanagan has opened up about the difficulties of parenthood, as she struggles to calm down her four-year-old son before bed. Sharing a candid video on Instagram on Wednesday (20 August), the mother-of-three can be seen trying to pacify Charlie, who was running around at 11.30pm. Bending down, she said: 'Charlie, I love you, can you come over to mummy please?' After he ran into her arms, she asked: 'Do you love your mummy?', to which he replied 'yes'. She then held his hand to her heart and chanted: 'I am calm, I love my mummy', which he repeated. In the clip's caption, she wrote: 'It can be really hard when they are little but also I know that I'm going to want these times back one day too."

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store