Austrian presidential candidate: “I will return Skanderbeg’s helmet to Krujë”

VIENNA, October 3, 2026 (ATSH) – Austrian economist and activist Günther Fehlinger-Jahn, who has announced his intention to run for president of Austria in the 2028 elections, has made a special promise concerning Albania.

In a video posted on social media, filmed at a museum in Vienna, Fehlinger-Jahn says that if he is elected president, he will commit to returning to Krujë the helmet and sword of Skanderbeg, which are kept in Austria.

“As President of Austria, I pledge to return the helmet and sword of Skanderbeg to Krujë, Albania, to honour King Skanderbeg,” he wrote in the post published on October 2.

Fehlinger-Jahn, chairman of the Austrian Committee for NATO Enlargement, is known for his longstanding engagement in favour of NATO and European Union enlargement in the Western Balkans. He has also lived and worked for several years in Albania and has frequently taken public positions on the country.

The helmet and sword attributed to Skanderbeg are kept at the Weltmuseum Wien. In 2012, the objects were brought temporarily to Albania as part of an exhibition at the National Historical Museum.

Fehlinger-Jahn has also previously announced ideas for strengthening Austrian-Albanian historical ties and for erecting a monument to Skanderbeg in Vienna.