A Muslim country that loves America

In this time of dispiriting headlines -- when Islamist terrorists target Christian children and their mothers on an Easter Sunday outing in Lahore, Pakistan; when an American presidential candidate advocates stopping Muslims from coming to the United States; when ISIS terrorists have just killed dozens in Brussels; when the very possibility of peaceful coexistence sometimes seems remote, there is a place that may just restore our faith in the future: Welcome to Albania.

The small Muslim majority nation in the Balkans, a region that until recently was synonymous with political turbulence, is a model of inter-religious coexistence. And it is also one of the most pro-American countries on Earth.

How did that happen? The answer contains important lessons for America on the global stage.

Walk around the airy streets of the capital Tirana and ask people what they think about the United States, and you will be met with almost uniform responses of admiration, respect and gratitude.

Just as uniform is the reaction to the U.S. presidential election.

Albanians say they are not following the primaries closely, but they react without hesitation when they hear the name "Trump," with some laughing, some shaking their heads, and others wincing. Most have not heard of Ted Cruz, and seem enthusiastic about a possible Hillary Clinton presidency. But when it comes to Trump, reaction is a mixture of disbelief, amusement and revulsion. "He seems a little crazy, but clever," Aurora Xhixha, a microbiologist, told me. "Selfish," is how Endri Hasanaj described him.

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