Greece names a convicted politician from Albania’s ethnic Greek minority as candidate in EU election

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece’s governing conservative party has added a convicted politician from Albania’s ethnic Greek minority to its list of candidates for the upcoming European Parliament election, adding to the already existing tension between the two countries. Fredi Beleris was elected mayor of the town of Himare in southern Albania last year but was arrested on vote-buying charges and not sworn in. He was handed a two-year suspended sentence in March. The politician had denied the charges against him, and Greece’s government called his pre-trial detention unfair, threatening to block Albania’s attempt at joining the European Union. Beleris posted on Facebook Tuesday, saying: “It is a battle for the rule of law and democracy.”