An unprecedented political spectacle is currently unfolding around the Albanian ambassador in Vienna, Fate Vela.

While the FPÖ has now submitted an urgent inquiry to the Federal Council under reference number 4331/J-BR/2025, the political explosiveness of the matter is heightened by the fact that the NEOS party had already expressed criticism of Velaj’s appointment in the past, represented by Dr. Helmut Brandstätter. Now, however, NEOS leader Beate Meinl-Reisinger is in office as foreign minister – and is apparently letting the matter drop.

FPÖ criticizes Meinl-Reisinger’s cover-up tactics “Andreas Spanring (FPÖ) sums it up succinctly: ”The NEOS have exposed themselves as power-hungry turncoats. Yesterday they were whistleblowers on a moral mission – today they are part of the system they once fought against. In the Foreign Ministry, the truth about Ambassador Velaj is being covered up instead of clarified. This is not a new policy – it is pure hypocrisy.

In the urgent inquiry by Federal Council member Andreas Spanring (FPÖ), key questions about Velaj’s conduct and appointment are raised in points 33 to 37 (see Parliament, reference number 4331/J-BR/2025: https://www.parlament.gv.at/dokument/BR/J-BR/4331/fname_1677293.pdf). It takes a particularly critical look at how it was possible for a politically controversial writer with little diplomatic experience in his home country to be appointed Albania’s official representative in Vienna.

Forgotten parliamentary question from the NEOS Foreign Minister

The political background to this affair is noteworthy: on May 24, 2024, the then NEOS member of parliament Dr. Helmut Brandstätter submitted an extensive parliamentary question to the Foreign Ministry to obtain clarity on Velaj’s appointment (see https://www.parlament.gv.at/gegenstand/XXVII/J/18722). Brandstätter demanded transparency and clarification on 22 points, including how the selection process was conducted and whether reservations about Velaj were known. Today, however, responsibility for this diplomatic post lies with NEOS leader Beate Meinl-Reisinger – and the demand for transparency seems to have been replaced by political silence.

The fact that the issue is no longer limited to party political squabbling is also evident from the media attention it has received: Kronen Zeitung, Austria’s highest-circulation newspaper, devoted an entire page to the scandal surrounding Velaj in its June 3, 2024, edition, as can be seen from the newspaper clipping provided.

Toyota Yaris scandal: Protection in the Albanian embassy in Vienna

However, the scandal takes another explosive turn: Velaj is accused of providing shelter to his sister-in-law, Erjona Daupaj, at the embassy in Vienna. Daupaj is wanted by the Albanian Special Prosecutor’s Office (SPAK) in connection with the so-called “Toyota Yaris” scandal – a case involving alleged money laundering worth millions and entanglements within the judiciary. As the investigative portal Pamfleti.net reported back in 2024, Daupaj is one of the key figures in the affair.

According to the media outlet Prapaskena (December 2024), Daupaj is said to have stayed at the embassy in Vienna for a time. If this allegation is confirmed, it would be in direct violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and could be considered a breach of international law. According to the news portal Koha.net, the Albanian opposition party is openly talking about “criminal diplomacy.”

The fate of Velaj, or when the donkey becomes a knight

The well-known Albanian journalist and analyst Kastriot Myftaraj, who died in unclear circumstances, also dedicated a personal article to Fate Velaj in 2014. ( https://www.facebook.com/100044320365138/posts/646439522081522/ )

Quote from Kastriot Myftaraj: “In conclusion: In Albania, they say that the knighthood (Golden Medal of Merit of the Republic of Austria) that Fate received was the moment when ‘the donkey became a knight’. And when Edi Rama hugged him at the ceremony, he is said to have whispered in his ear: ‘My old friend, the donkey deserved this award more than you.’”

Scandals surrounding the ambassador

The Austrian magazine FOB has already published several articles detailing Velaj’s past and the political failures surrounding his appointment. In an article entitled “From welfare case to state affair,” the magazine traces Velaj’s rise from controversial artist to key diplomatic figure and describes him as “an embarrassment to Austria’s foreign policy” (see https://www.fob.at/vom-sozialfall-zur-staatsaffaere-albaniens-botschafter-velaj-blamiert-meinl-reisinger/). Further articles shed light on how the NEOS party under Meinl-Reisinger may have found itself in a conflict of interest—between promised transparency and actual opacity in the Velaj case (see https://www.fob.at/albanische-schatten-und-pinke-transparenzpolitik-velaj-und-die-stillen-albanischen-profiteure/).

Politically explosive remains the accusation that Meinl-Reisinger not only failed to question Velaj’s appointment despite the many warning signs, but also apparently covered for him. What began as an inquiry by the NEOS now threatens to become a political liability for the party.

It is a story full of contradictions: a liberal party that preaches transparency is coming under pressure from an opaque network of diplomats. A writer who once stood on the margins of society now sits in a key position—with potential links to alleged criminal networks. And a foreign minister who now has to explain why she is not explaining anything.

Report in the Kronen Zeitung newspaper on June 3, 2024:

Credits, cover photo: BKA / Andy Wenzel

Image info: On June 3, 2025, Chancellor Christian Stocker, Federal Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger, and Federal Minister Claudia Plakolm welcomed the diplomatic corps and representatives of international organizations to the Federal Chancellery.