ROME, FEBRUARY 26 – Albania’s ambassador to Rome, Llesh Kolais is days away from ending his six and a half year mandate and as he does so he has underlined the strength of bilateral relations between Italy and Albania and taken stock of his country’s Euro-Atlantic journey. Italy and Albania enjoy a solid economic relationship – Italy is Albania’s main commercial partner, and the two countries have a shared political-diplomatic vision. ”In 2005 interchange between the two countries was worth 893 million euro. I 2010 it reached 2 billion euro”, said Kolais. ”Roughly 40% of Albania’s commercial profits comes thanks to doing business with Italy, while a fifth of foreign investments in Albania originate from Italian companies.” Kolais noted that the number of Italian companies currently in Albania has risen to 400, which has soldered relations between Albanians and Italy. ”Since taking office in 2006 the number of Albanians has risen 47%”, han sade, – although an increase in arrivals has been tempered by remittances. ”The crisis which has hit Italy has triggered a sharp dip in remittances which have fallen from an average of 900 million euro in the 2008 pre-crisis period to 560 million last year”.
”We’re not encouraging a return of our citizens to their homeland as is happening in Greece”, he added. On the political front Italy and Albania signed a strategic partnership accord in 2010. In the period 2010-2012 both countries concluded a cooperation agreement for the development of projects worth 51 million euro. Underlining Italy’s role as a ‘great ally’ to Albania, Kolais said: ”Rome is not only very supportive of our entry into NATO, but also in facilitating our relationship with Brussels. For example, by helping garner a dialogue over visa liberalization with the EU”.
Speaking of the European Union, he added: ”if Albania still hasn’t managed to fulfill the conditions imposed by Brussels in order to obtain EU candidate status it’s a sign of a lack of political will from Tirana to make the necessary effort in becoming part of the largest family in Europe”. Nolais spoke of a lack of responsibility on the part of the opposition who failed to pass the laws necessary for reform requested by Brussels in the fields of justice, public administration and parliamentary rules. The next crucial test for the opening of negotiations will be the elections next June. In the meantime the game will be played out on different fronts such as the Central European Initiative (CEI), ”which Italy has powered”, says Kolais. Wrapping things up he added that what is needed is ”more communication between the institutions of member states as well as new projects in the transport sector to bring the two coasts of the Adriatic closer together, and more economic and cultural initiatives.
