The Albanian police have set up multiple checkpoints on streets that lead to the capital, Tirana. Numerous citizens have affirmed that on Monday, May 18, there were more checkpoints and police stops than during the days in which the country was on total lockdown. Checks and stops for cars with work and circulation permits have increased precisely on the day when the Alliance for the Protection of the National Theatre called Albanian citizens to protest what they called ‘government dictatorship’. Source Exit News
OPEC+ headed for a clash with the U.S. as more members rejected President Joe Biden’s call for the group to raise oil production faster and help reduce gasoline prices. On Monday, Kuwait said the cartel should stick with its plan to increase output gradually because oil markets were well-balanced. That followed similar statements from other key members in recent days, including Iraq, Algeria, Angola and Nigeria. Source Al Jazeera
“If a state buys (weaponry) from us, it’s no longer a Turkish product. It might be manufactured in Turkey, but it belongs to Ukraine,” Cavusoglu told reporters after meeting his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, on the margins of the G20 summit in Rome. “Turkey cannot be blamed for this,” he said. Source The Defence Post
Bulgaria has sent 350 additional military personnel to its border with Turkey amid rising migration levels. Defense Minister Georgi Panayotov told Bulgarian media that the troops were arriving to “support the border police”. Source EuroNews
