A Turkish Air Force transport plane delivered two riot-control vehicles to Tirana International Airport on Monday, according to video and photographs circulating in Albanian media. The images emerged as student-led protests demanding Prime Minister Edi Rama's resignation entered their seventh consecutive day.
Footage published by opposition Democratic Party MP Belind Këlliçi and by the outlet Vox News shows two white water cannon vehicles at Rinas airport. Photographs published by media outlet Syri.net show an Airbus A400M in Turkish Air Force markings on the apron, with the vehicles beside its rear cargo ramp.
Flight-tracking data shared by the outlet shows a Turkish Air Force A400M returning to its home base in Kayseri, central Turkey, the same afternoon.
The Turkish Embassy in Tirana has not responded to Syri's request for comment, sent about six hours before publication. The Albanian government has made no public statement.
Exit.al requested comment from the Turkish Embassy, the State Police and the Ministry of Internal Affairs but none had responded by the time of publication.
Police have used water cannons, tear gas and rubber bullets against protesters since clashes began on October 13. The protests are the most serious challenge Rama has faced since taking office in 2013.
Albania and Turkey have close security ties, including a law enforcement cooperation agreement and a military framework agreement signed in 2024. It is not known whether the vehicles were donated, purchased, or supplied under an existing arrangement.
The government has yet to say where the vehicles came from, what they cost, or how they will be used.
For a NATO member and EU candidate country, reinforcing riot-control capacity in the middle of a political crisis without public explanation raises serious questions.
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