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Albanian political masters & clan leaders are sometimes united when big foreign players (e.g. Ottomans, Nazis, the U.S. under Clinton) support a pan-Albanian expansionist agenda. However, the U.S. under Bush has shown no appetite to support Albanian irredentism despite sincere acts of solidarity by some individual Albanians and despite calculated gestures of politicians, (such as sending troops to Iraq, which is of little use to the U.S. anyway). That's why Albanian lobbyists ended their love affair with Republican politicians (i.e. some second rate ones such as Dole & McCain) and played almost all their cards on Kerry (+ Dick Holbrooke, Wesley Clark & the Soros empire) ... and lost!

Political Islam, having shown clear intentions to reestablish itself in the Balkans, naturally sees fertile ground in desparately poor and predominantly Muslim Albania. Counting on a continuing petrodollar bonanza, organized Islam can reasonably hope to outspend Christian, secular, American or pro-western institutions in northern Albania & Kosovo. The "Islamic University", as other Islamic institutions, will be funded by middle eastern sources (as the article hints) and will thus obviously be prone to islamic radicalism.

The reasons that Nano and other Christians support the Islamic University are complex and related to the delicate and potentially explosive balance between Toscs - Gheqs and Christians - Muslims. Whatever the reasons, it is a clear indication of the ascendancy of Islam in Albania. Pictures of American flags next to Albanian pretty traditional dresses will do nothing to change the reality of a predominantly Muslim, inherently unstable and geopolitically opportunistic and unreliable Albania.

the delicate and potentially explosive balance between Toscs - Gheqs and Christians - Muslims.

Not hardly. The Gheg/Tosk thing is old business ended. Hoxha deliberately mixed them up around the country and then the fall of communism created another rural to urban move that has even further diluted those loyalties. What rivalries exist are akin to our current old south versus the Yankees feelings. As for the Christian-Muslim rivalry, the fact that this Muslim majority country has elected a Christian President and a Christian Prime Minister should give you a clue as to how "strong" that rivalry is.

Pythag, I'm not sure why you are trying to denigrate or diminish Albania as an American ally. There are other peoples in that region who truly are not friendly to America. For example, Greek terrorists have killed several Americans and the Greek government has voted with France and against us on Iraq every chance they could get. And while Albania has done all that it could to assist us in Iraq and in the war on terror, nearby Serbia was Saddam Hussein's ally--built bunkers for Saddam Hussein, shipped him ammunition, repaired his aircraft, and even sent air defense advisers to Iraq as recently as 2002.

If you want to spout off about the Balkans, those are some countries that have truly been "not helpful" in the Rumsfeldian meaning. Speaking of whom:

There he is in Tirana thanking Prime Minister Nano for Albania's support.

A major factor that is often overlooked when discussing Islam in Albania is the country's recent history. Enver Hoxha ruled the country for a quarter century, and declared it to be an officially atheist country. Religion was outlawed. Houses of worship were destroyed. The result was a generation in which the people were religious by heritage only, not by practice. They might be considered Islamic or Christian because that was what their grandparents or great-grandparents were, but not usually because that is what they are. To use the commonly quoted figure that Albania is 65-70% Muslim and then conclude that Albanians are Islamic fundamentalists is not a realistic assessment. As I said, most Albanians are religious by heritage only, not by practice. Atheism is dwindling, but it still has a strong influence.

Religion is beginning to revive in Albania. It is a metaphysical battleground, the front lines in a way between Christianity and Islam. Islamic countries are investing heavily, but Christianity has been doing surprisingly well.

I have been to Albania and have taught both Muslims and atheists, with some positive results. My children have been much more often, with much greater results.

My general impression of Albania is that it is pro-American, largely non-religious until recent years, and one of the most fertile fields in the world for the Gospel during the last decade or so. They are also grateful allies and very gracious hosts.