FLASH NEWS
"You think you are Aristotle's heir"/ Protothema: Rama attacks and mocks Greek journalist
2026-01-15 20:32:54 / POLITIKË
Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama made an unprovoked attack on a Greek-American journalist who was moderating the discussion he was participating in, during the Sustainable Development Summit in Abu Dhabi.
Among other things, Rama told him "you are not a descendant of Plato and Aristotle as you think ," while accusing him of reducing the economic value of Tirana's agreement with Saudi Arabia.
It all started when Greek-born moderator John Defterios, a journalist for decades at CNN, mispronounced the names of Edi Rama and Montenegrin Prime Minister Milojko Spajic during their speech.
As soon as the two leaders took the stage for the debate, the Montenegrin prime minister simply corrected Defterio for his mistake, having actually been prompted by the journalist himself. Shortly after, Edi Rama also corrected him, but visibly irritated, accusing him of pronouncing the names incorrectly because he is Greek.
Continuing the debate and while discussing the energy investments being made in Albania, Edi Rama said “let’s thank our mentor Sultan Al Jaber” (Minister of Energy of the United Arab Emirates) and asked Defterio if he knew him. Defterio, on the other hand and for the sake of humor, replied with a smile “how can he not be sure who he (Sultan Al Jaber) is”, inviting the audience to applaud.
The Albanian prime minister, who apparently didn't get the joke, mocked the journalist by saying: "As a Greek, you should have known. That's how you do it, you always underestimate people because you think you have a monopoly on philosophy and are the direct heir of Plato and Aristotle," adding immediately afterwards: "But you're not."
Edi Rama's attacks on the journalist and his origins did not stop there, as towards the end of their discussion, he again aggressively addressed him on the occasion of the amount of an investment in Albania. The journalist spoke of 1 billion, with Rama correcting him twice, telling him that it was more. "No, you are calculating like a Greek again. When you talk about your money, you add three zeros. When you talk about other people's money, you subtract three zeros. That's what you do. That's why the EU loves you so much."
John Defterios: Let's welcome His Excellency, Edi Rame, Prime Minister of Albania, good to see you, Edi. You may be seated. And His Excellency, Malicho Spasic, Prime Minister of Montenegro. I'll let you correct me now, there you are.
Milojko Spitz : Milojko Spitz.
John Defterios: Oh, Speights, okay. I have an Italian and Greek accent.
Edi Rama: It's Edi Rama, not Rama.
John Defterios: (laughs) I had a fantastic start with you two.
John Defterios: I'm Greek, yes.
Edi Rama: This is why you pronounced our names wrong. This is what you do. I know because we are neighbors and I know it very well.
John Defterios: (laughs) I'm happy to have you both.
Edi Rama: Our mentor, he's the man who gave one of the best speeches I've ever heard yesterday. His name is Dr. Sultan Jaber. I don't know if you know him.
John Defterios: Really? I'm not sure...
Edi Rama: As a Greek, you should know him better.
John Defterios: I don't know how much longer I could have known him.
Edi Rama: You always underestimate people. You think you have a monopoly on philosophy and that you are the heir of Plato and Aristotle. But you are not.
John Defterios: With all due respect…
Edi Rama: We have to finish, I don't want to waste time with this great country, Montenegro. Montenegro is the largest and most important country in our region, it has 50 million citizens, we are a small country, Serbia is bigger, but Montenegro is the only one. I'm sorry, but we will leave it with a sweetness at the end.
John Defterios: It's amazing, a billion dollar project is being implemented.
Edi Rama: It's more than a billion.
John Defterios: An investment of one billion along with three such projects.
Edi Rama: It's more than a billion.
Edi Rama: Again, you count as Greek. When you talk about your own money, you add three extra zeros. When you talk about other people's money, you subtract three zeros. That's what you do. THAT'S why the EU loves you so much.
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