Albania aims to establish a Bektashi Muslim state in Tirana, similar to the Vatican.

As reported by Ukrinform citing Reuters, this statement was made on Saturday by Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama.

"The history of the Bektashi itself is a significant call to grant the holy residence of the World Bektashi Center a status similar to that of the Vatican," said Rama during a ceremony dedicated to the 95th anniversary of the transfer of the holy residence to Albania from Turkey.

If this is realized, the enclave for the Islamic Sufi order will become one of the smallest states in the world, possessing its own administration, but it will not have a tax regime and there will be no police force. Rama noted that the symbolic state will be "without walls, without police, without an army, without taxes or other attributes, but as a headquarters, a spiritual state."

At the same time, the Prime Minister did not disclose details regarding timelines, and the plan still needs to be approved by the Albanian parliament.

It is noted that founded in the Ottoman Empire in the 13th century as a branch of Sufism, the Bektashi order has been based in Albania since 1929 after the newly established Turkish Republic under Kemal Atatürk banned its activities.

Last year, Rama stated that Albania plans to create a state in the eastern part of the capital as a spiritual center for Bektashi followers dispersed across the region, including Kosovo, North Macedonia, and Albania itself. Approximately 10% of the country's population, according to the latest census, consists of followers of the Bektashi order.

As reported by Ukrinform, on January 21, Volodymyr Zelensky held a meeting with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, during which they signed an Agreement on long-term cooperation and support between the countries.