Albania President Accepts Defeat

President Sali Berisha conceded defeat Monday in Sunday’s parliamentary elections and hinted that he will honor an earlier commitment to resign as chief executive of Albania.

Berisha’s declaration seemed designed to reassure Albanians and the outside world that the country has a chance of coming back after four months of rebellion, violence and chaos.

In an effort to calm a tense population, Fatos Nano, the leader of the Socialist Party who claimed victory Monday, called on armed guards loyal to the president to respect the results. Fatos is a Marxist-trained economist who says he is molding his party into a European-style social-democratic party.