EU calls on Albania's govt. not to interfere in internal church affairs

European Parliament. Photo: orthodoxianewsagency.gr

The European Parliament, in its new resolution document dated July 9, 2025, in the context of Albania's EU accession negotiations, demanded that the Albanian authorities fully respect the autonomy of the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania and avoid actions of state interference and manipulation in the structure of its hierarchical and administrative structures.

The Resolution calls on Albania's authorites "to refrain from any actions that undermine its freedom of religious expression or property rights" and return holy temples and other property, including churches, monasteries, cemeteries, shrines, icons, relics, and archives, unlawfully held by the state. 

The document notes numerous cases of abuse where the properties of Orthodox parishes and monasteries are not registered and are used for personal gain with the connivance of the authorities.

Special attention in the document is given to the situation of the Greek ethnic minority, the majority of which is composed of the Orthodox population. 

The European Union demands that Albania respect the religious and cultural identity of the Greeks, restore and legally recognize the churches, cemeteries, and other objects of the Greek Orthodox community, and refrain from their destruction or expropriation.

The Resolution emphasizes that the development and well-being of the Orthodox Church of Albania is linked to the preservation of the dignity and legal rights of the Greek minority. 

In this context, the EU specifically mentions the need to change the status of the structure and operation of the State Commission for Minorities, more substantial financing of actions for the protection of the identity of minorities and the promotion of cultural wealth, and the assurance of public provision for education in the mother tongue Greek without geographical exclusions or numerical limitations.

The European Parliament calls the Cens 2023 Census discriminatory and not in line with the standards of the Council of Europe, as it ignored people's right to self-determination and was rejected by both the Orthodox Church and representatives of national minorities, especially the Greek.

Earlier, the UOJ wrote that Zelensky deprived His Beatitude Onuphry of citizenship.

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