Authors

Discussion

The period between 1878 and 1916 represents one of the most complex phases in the history of the Albanian question, when the territories inhabited by Albanians became the object of political and diplomatic rivalry between the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Russian Empire. Following the Congress of Berlin (1878), the Great Powers sought to reshape the political map of the Balkans, each pursuing opposing strategic interests. Austria-Hungary aimed to preserve the Balkan balance of power and prevent Russia and the Slavic states from reaching the Adriatic Sea, viewing the Albanian element as a protective barrier for its influence in the region. Conversely, Russia supported the aspirations of the Orthodox Slavic states (Serbia, Montenegro, and Bulgaria), seeking their expansion into Albanian territories as part of its Pan-Slavist agenda. This Austro-Russian rivalry directly influenced the formation of the Albanian League of Prizren, the process leading to the Declaration of Albanian Independence (1912), and the diplomatic confrontations during World War I. The confrontation of these interests demonstrates that the Albanian question was not merely a national issue but also a key factor in the geopolitical balance of the Balkans at the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.