Sovereign State of the Bektashi Order

Following the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire and the formation of the secular Republic of Turkey, President Mustafa Kemal Atatürk shut down all tekkes, including the Bektashi Order in 1925.

[10] On 21 September 2024, Albanian prime minister Edi Rama announced plans to create the Sovereign State of the Bektashi Order as a gesture of religious tolerance and to promote more positive views of Islam in Albania and the rest of the world.

[3][12] He also expressed his belief that securing sovereign status would uplift the Bektashi Order and enhance its ability to fight radical ideologies that have affected the Muslim world and the international community.

[3] He suggested that countries such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar may see value in supporting the Order's peaceful Sufi Shia tradition to reinforce moderate interpretations of Islam.

[3] Additionally, he suggested that states facing internal challenges with militant Islam, such as China, could align with the Bektashi Order as a means of countering extremism without fueling division.

[3] Albanian journalist Arbër Hitaj and security expert Ilir Kulla have said that the planned state would likely be similar to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM).

"[16] Albanians interviewed by Euronews cited economic concerns and a fear of Albania turning into an "Islamic country" as criticisms about the planned Bektashi state.

[17] Additionally, Albanians interviewed by Balkan Insight characterized the planned state as a distraction from alleged domestic scandals created by Edi Rama in an attempt to gain favorable news coverage.

[18] Besnik Sinani, a research fellow at the Center for Muslim Theology at Tübingen University, said the comparison to Vatican City "does not withstand historical scrutiny" and called the proposal "an unprecedented case of contemporary religious engineering."