The Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Ferit Hoxha, raised the alarm about the dangers that, according to him, the rapid and "largely unregulated" development of Artificial Intelligence brings, listing it among the greatest challenges for modern democracies.
During the conference "Confronting Information Manipulation and Foreign Interference: Albania and the Context of Enlargement", Hoxha stated that information manipulation and foreign interference are no longer simply a clash of narratives, but instruments of hybrid pressure that aim to erode citizens' trust, deepen social divisions and influence democratic processes.
"Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference is not simply a matter of competing narratives. It is increasingly being used as a well-thought-out instrument of hybrid pressure, designed to erode trust, exploit social divisions, weaponize algorithms, amplify discontent, and distort the sense of reality," the minister said.
According to Hoxha, the aim of these interventions is not always to convince citizens of a certain narrative, but to create distrust towards institutions, independent media, and democracy itself.
In this context, he also singled out Artificial Intelligence, stating that: "In a world increasingly dominated by social media and transformed by the rapid and largely unregulated development of Artificial Intelligence, no country is immune to these threats."
The Minister also emphasized that Albania, due to its history with lack of freedom, will continue to defend democratic values, adding that freedom requires responsibility and respect for the truth, citizens and institutions.
The problem is that the European Union is not yet in the alarm phase, but in the solution phase. With the European Act on Artificial Intelligence, Brussels has begun to set rules for technology that the Albanian minister describes as “largely unregulated”. Therefore, less alarmist rhetoric and more diplomacy would be expected from the Foreign Minister to bring to Tirana the experience and standards that Europe has begun to implement. After all, this is also his job.
