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Albanian lawmakers choose new president amid boycott

Ilir Meta to become Albania's seventh president despite opposition boycott of vote

28.04.2017 - Update : 28.04.2017
Albanian lawmakers choose new president amid boycott Outgoing speaker of Albania’s parliament and president-elect Ilir Meta addresses lawmakers after being chosen as president following a fourth round of voting in the Albanian parliament, Tirana on April 28, 2017. ( Olsi Shehu - Anadolu Agency )​

By Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia

Albanian lawmakers on Friday chose parliamentary speaker Ilir Meta as president, amid an opposition boycott.

Meta, chair of the Socialist Movement for Integration -- the junior partner in Albania’s coalition government -- was the sole remaining candidate after four rounds of voting.

He becomes the seventh president of Albania, despite the opposition boycott of Friday’s vote.

Current President Bujar Nishani's five-year term will end on July 24. Amid constitutional wrangling, Meta will take over if lawmakers fail to elect a new president by then.

Meta is on record as describing Albania’s relation with Turkey as “robust and traditional”. Speaking in 2016, Meta also thanked Turkey for its “tremendous effort to help Syrian citizens during the refugee crisis”.

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