From the US Ambassador, YURI KIM
August in Albania is a time for well-deserved rest and relaxation and, like many of you, I will take a break from work.
At the same time, August of this year is not the usual one of other years. It comes after an unparalleled challenge, as Albania has worked to follow a sustainable path through the COVID pandemic and has continued its recovery from the November 2019 earthquake.
Albania has concluded elections that will mark the return of the opposition to Parliament, an event of critical importance. As the ODIHR noted in its final report, the April 25 election was good but not perfect, and the United States looks forward to working with the majority and opposition in Parliament to address recurring election problems as they engage in work. serious and cross-party to ensure that the forthcoming elections meet the highest standards. Also, the United States will continue to strongly support the reforms that will bring Albania fully into the European family. Five years after the laws were passed, Justice Reform is yielding real results that will help end impunity.
Albania’s role in the region and its relationship with the United States are stronger than ever. Albania successfully navigated its mandate as OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in 2020, despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Last March, the EU invited Albania to join the path of talks to become an EU member. Earlier this year, Albania was the main host of the largest US-led military exercise in the Balkans since World War II. Ever since the United States and Albania signed the historic Memorandum of Economic Cooperation in October 2020, plans to build the Skavica hydropower plant and bring liquefied natural gas through Vlora are advancing rapidly. That means more energy to supply a growing economy, more jobs for Albanians as well as Americans, and more American investment in Albania.
However, the United States and Albania should not simply be content to look back. We must look forward with hope and determination to make even more progress in democracy, defense and business.
Thirty years after the Albanian people – with the full support of the United States – broke the shackles of the communist dictatorship, Albania has reached a new moment of historic opportunity. In this sense, August this year is not only a time for rest and relaxation, but also a time for reflection and planning, to learn from the past and grasp opportunities ahead.
On January 1, 2022, Albania will take on the most important role it has ever played on the world stage, sitting alongside the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Russia and France in the UN Security Council. As it continues to implement the necessary reforms, Albania is getting closer, day by day, to the First Intergovernmental Conference that will formally begin negotiations for EU membership – a process and goal that the United States strongly supports. Building on our work with the Defender Europe 21 exercise, we look forward to significantly strengthening our defense cooperation. We also expect more American investments to come to Albania.
Much will depend on the demands of the Albanian people and the choices that Albanian leaders will make.
We look forward to seeing Parliament return with full participation, so that Albanians from across the political spectrum are represented. We urge leaders on all sides to return with renewed determination to work hard on behalf of the Albanian people. This will require change, vision, and a true leader to root out crime and corruption, so that everyone has a fair opportunity and a better future. He will demand that Edi Rama, Lulzim Basha, as well as other leaders check the lists once again to make sure that when they return to Parliament, people can be proud of their representatives. It will also require the parties to rise above their party interests and find a way to reach a compromise and cooperate with each other for a higher cause, for the future of Albania.
For too long, corruption has been used as a weapon by state and non-state actors to buy politicians, win contracts and interfere in democratic processes. President Biden and Secretary Blinken have made it clear through their words and actions that the fight against corruption is a national priority for the United States. We want an ally that is strong, capable and prosperous. We want a partner, not a problem.
Over the past year and a half I have had the opportunity to travel everywhere in this beautiful country and meet as many people as I can. Bajram Curri, Shkodra, Kukësi, Kruja, Tirana, Durrësi, Korça, Elbasani, Pogradeci, Berati, Gjirokastra, Himara, Saranda, Vlora – every city, town and village – has its own peculiarities, but they unite at one point: they have come to the tip of the nose with the old methods; want real change; want the end of corruption; want a justice system where no one is above the law; want criminals to stay out of government and politics; want a place that entices young people to stay because of opportunities; want a country that moves forward, not backward.
It is time for leaders to reflect and take bold action. It is time for leaders to show who you are and what you think this place deserves. It is time to lead.
As we take a vacation this summer, my colleagues and I at the US Embassy will reflect on and plan for the best way to intensify our efforts for democracy, defense, and business. We hope that the leaders of Albania – those in power and those who hope to be in power one day – will also reflect and plan for the future, for a more democratic, more secure and more prosperous Albania./Panorama
