About this audiobook

From the remote mountains of Albania to the UN corridors, this memoir reveals how one man's courage helped end nearly half a century of diplomatic silence between Albania and the United States. Dr. Ilia Zhulati rose from village poverty to become Albania's UN representative from 1983-1987, navigating Enver Hoxha's paranoid regime while secretly working toward diplomatic breakthrough. Through collaboration with Professor Charles Moskos, they conducted delicate negotiations—Vienna meetings, coded messages, building trust between sworn enemies. The memoir chronicles Albania's transformation from Europe's most isolated communist state to struggling democracy, revealing the human cost of totalitarian rule. Their efforts culminated in President Bush's historic 1991 decision to restore full diplomatic relations. "Lifting The Iron Curtain" illuminates a forgotten Cold War chapter, proving individuals can change history through conviction and hope.

Dystopian

Political Intrigue

Journey

Coming of Age

Family

Rebellion

Identity

Betrayal

Audiobook details

GenreBiography and Memoir, Politics and Government

Length5 hrs 42 mins

Narrated bySelect Your Own

FormateBook with Audio

Publish dateJul 4, 2025

LanguageEnglish

About the author

Ilia Zhulati

Dr. Ilia Zhulati was born in 1947 in Grabovë, Përmet, Albania. He studied English and linguistics at the University of Tirana, earning a master's in contrastive linguistics. He joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1982, serving as a diplomat for the Albanian Mission to the United Nations in New York from 1983 to 1987. After communism's fall, he pursued doctoral studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Sorbonne, Paris, and University of Aarhus, Denmark. In 1999, he received "Doctor of Sciences" from Albania's Higher Commission.View all by Ilia Zhulati