May 17, 2025 09:48 AM IST
The Albanian Prime Minister greeted and welcomed more than 40 leaders, including Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, at the meeting of the European Political Community.
A video of the Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama’s way of welcoming Italian PM Giorgia Meloni while hosting Europe’s leaders on Friday has gone viral on social media. The video shows him kneeling on one knee and folding his hands to welcome the Italian leader – a gesture many media users claimed would make Elon Musk jealous, referencing rumours about a romantic relationship between the tech billionaire and the politician.
“Giorgia Meloni truly commands the utmost respect of world leaders. This is quite the sight to see,” Joey Mannarino wrote on X. The video captures Edi Rama standing on one side of a red carpet holding an umbrella amid rain. As Meloni approaches him, the Albanian PM gently puts down the umbrella on the ground while kneeling on one knee.
He then keeps his hands folded waiting for Meloni to cross the carpet. Following this, the Albanian leader hugs the Italian PM and features a big smile to welcome her to the European Political Community (EPC) summit.
Not just Meloni, other videos on social media show how Rama gripped France’s Emmanuel Macron in a bro hug while greeting him.
Take a look at his video with Giorgia Meloni:
According to AFP, he said, “Here’s the Sun King,” while hugging Macron. “There was a suspicion, but it became scientific proof from the European weather forecast institute that the persisting — and not indigenous — rain was brought by the British delegation yesterday morning,” he said for the British in attendance.
“Where all of Europe has come today and where the whole world will be watching, I say hello to you,” the PM wrote on Instagram ahead of the summit.
“It’s true that I am the tallest among them, but I lead a country that is one of the smallest, and for us it’s already a big honour to have the opportunity to host this summit,” Rama told AFP.
EPC brings together the members of the European Union and 20 other countries. This year, issues in Ukraine dominated the conversation at the summit.
