The fifth joint meeting of the governments of the Republic of Albania and the Republic of Kosovo took place in the city of Peja today. The joint session ended with the signing of nine agreements and protocols of bilateral cooperation.

Following is the Prime Minister Edi Rama’s speech during the meeting:

Honourable Prime Minister Haradinaj!

Honourable members of the governments of the Republic of Kosovo and the Republic of Albania!

A day ago in Prizren, we commemorated, for second time this year, the testaments and covenants of the Albanian Prizren League that still remain high on the agenda.

I would like to read excerpts of a letter that a great Albanian of Kosovo, Father Shtjefën Gjeçovi sent from Peja to Faik Konica 120 years ago, back in 1898:

“The heart of a true Albanian would crave unification among ourselves: Gheg and Tosks be all united in heart and mind and not divide if we are to want this so good and beautiful Albania.

To Albania, Kosovo is an independent and sovereign state, equal to its likes, under a democratic and liberal constitutional regime, whose normalized guarantee and existence is the key to the final and long-term stabilization and regional connectivity.

For Kosovo, apart from sentimentally being the reference parable of its nation-building, Albania is the state naturally more inclined to cooperate and most interested in Kosovo’s success followings its after its foundation in response to a dysfunctional justice.

This justice is indeed the international right and it is today the day to strongly state that the international right knows no half states or states on paper that are stripped of the prerogatives and their right to self-government.

This justice, the international right, is that of the human rights that knows no half-people and does not acknowledge the basic rights to free movement of people and goods at half price.

We have and will always welcome the bilateral or multilateral dynamics that lead towards completion of a yet, artificially maimed sovereignty of the Republic of Kosovo, its people’s dignity and free movement. That’s why we have been and remain disillusioned with the EU approach of EU and all states which have helped lay the basis for Kosovo independence relative to the right to free movement of its citizens. Therefore, the establishment of Kosovo’s functional Armed Forces was the right step, the significant and meaningful step towards completing the framework of a state that no one should consider as a half state.

However, on the other hand, delays in processes like Interpol membership are nothing but deterrent for the approach of potential partners in this region which unfortunately awakes to a conflict mentality and instruments but also to strained schemes of fears and nightmares to play the victim in the public eye. Meanwhile, the victim, Kosovo, has shown its willingness from the very beginning to get over the past through a straightforward and sincere dialogue which does not happen to be in kind from the other side.

The Republic of Albania sees implementation of the Republic of Kosovo’s sovereignty as a precondition for the Western Balkans to stop being used as an area where conflicts remain a potential threat. Mutilation of this sovereignty gives them a free hand to declare Kosovo’s fragility as a country that best suits them to refer it by footnotes by presenting it as the Balkan’s cloak, sometimes as the rich soil of organized crime, sometimes as the hidden beard of the radical Islamism, and sometimes as the perennial interethnic warmonger, whereas Kosovo, over all these years, is neither more nor less than the most meaningful and significant representation of the desire for peace, the most radiating expression of the respect for the ethnic minorities and, on the other hand, the most significant parable of the will and readiness for cooperation, dialogue and sincere interaction.

The Republic of Albania is convinced that, quite unlike from the allies and the world’s most democratic states, the path towards the region’s sustainable and stable development does not necessarily passes through recognition by everyone and without subjecting Kosovo to paralyzing and insulting conditions. This is a must and not one of the missions.

The Republic of Albania is totally committed to assist to this process, refraining from any action that would imply tutelage.

Kosovo has shown it is absolutely capable of playing its international role either in negotiations or with the countries that sign accords towards consensus with their right hand to tear them then up with the left hand with the signature ink still undried.

Kosovo has made substantial progress at the regional level by assuming the rotating presidency of the Western Balkan Fund and the South-East European Cooperation Process (SEECP)

Likewise, the country’s role has turned out to be substantial in other regional initiatives too.

Of course, we should openly and straightforwardly state that the Republic of Kosovo has also made progress in the dialogue with Serbia by knowing to make concessions it deems indispensable, abiding by the principles of the reciprocity and sovereignty, but not by gaining what it is entitled to gain in return.

Progress has been made in many directions and a draft accord is underway under the oversight of the European Union, for example. However, the frenzy with which Serbia is blocking Kosovo’s accession to regional and international bodies, even the unexplainable courage to seek withdrawal of Kosovo’s recognitions as a Republic, is not merely disturbing, but challenging and it even discourages the dialogue process itself and it is provoking as it prompts the need for proportional reactions.

I wouldn’t omit even a single comma in the conclusions drawn by a British Minister, according to whom: “Blocking Kosovo’s recognition represents the most cynical encouragement to criminal enclaves, where Mafia groups, just multi-ethnic as Kosovo’s population itself, cooperate. Serbia’s efforts – the British Minister writes – “have economically affected all communities without exception. Kosovo farmers cannot sell their produce in southern Serbia. Containers, or whole trailers loaded with fruits and vegetables and products of a favorable climate, highly sought Northern Europe markets, should come out daily from Kosovo. But even here, as elsewhere, Serbia blocks them. Taxation administration in Serbia provide certificates to Serbian firms in Kosovo, which allows them, with the exception of those of Albanian Kosovars, to sell products in Serbia. According to the European Union, the parallel system of the relevant documentation violates Kosovo’s concept as a single customs and trade zone, where the Kosovo authorities only have the right to issue such certificates.”

This is what a British Minister writes.

There is a lot more.

The spectre of blocking the Energy Agreement and the 400-kV interconnection line between Albania and Kosovo for this reason proves that the regional connectivity remains hostage, not to the region’s inability to materialize it, but to a whole philosophy and strategy and a blocking and regressive approach pursued by one of the countries, whose natural and historical path should have made it feel the locomotive of integration.

What about the roaming charges agreement and Kosovo’s exclusion from it?

This is how in this very special context of the constant stab in Kosovo’s back by its larger neighbour the imposition of the 100% tariff on Serbian products is explained. It is an irrational condition in normal circumstances, but it is normal in an irrational situation, like the ones that Serbia’s double approach constantly triggers.

Whoever sees the 100% tariff as an economic decision is wrong. No, the 100% tariff is a political reaction. Political reaction to the continuing excesses of Serbia’s supremacist behaviour towards Kosovo.

Kosovo’s Minister of Labour and Social Welfare was telling me last night how Belgrade, until 2 o’clock after midnight, through the Europe’s envoys, asked him to avoid the word the Republic of Kosovo during his speech he was set to deliver a day later at a joint meeting where Kosovo was participating with the good will to sign a joint declaration of the path towards peace and regional cooperation.

“What the fuck!” – one would say in the European Parliament’s language.

We can’t deny that bilateral relations are not always without difficulty. The example of Albania and Kosovo is sufficient to understand difficulties are encountered in their ties, let alone the relations between Kosovo and Serbia. However, these difficulties are surmountable when good will is show to move towards a common Albania-Kosovo partnership in many aspects, in many deficiencies and potentials.

Today we are in a stage when we need to conclude by keeping in mind what I said above.

“Zero tariffs and zero non-tariff barriers within the first half of next year between Albania and Kosovo. If we are here to do this, then we should do it without having the need to gather in another joint meeting. This is the fifth meeting and today it is time to impose 100 percent tariffs in the north and have zero tariffs in Kosovo’s south.

Secondly, we are moving towards unification of customs. Tariffs on Kosovo goods transit through port of Durres will be removed starting from January 1, while other steps towards customs unification will be made over the first half of next year. Whoever sees it as a threat, either in Belgrade or in Brussels, is welcomed to visit and sit with us on the table so that we can explain it is not a threat, but an invitation to everyone to follow the example of this cooperation and primary Serbia should follow suit.

Full recognition of all documents within next six months. What is issues in Albania as a document should be considered a document issued in Kosovo and vice versa and for Kosovo’s or Albania’s Albanian entrepreneurs it should be sufficient to report in one office only and not in two. We are not Albanians and Serbs, but Albanians and Albanians.

The agreement on the mutual recognition of the driving licenses. The driving licenses between Kosovo and Albania are not like the ones between Albania and Greece that took 30 years of negotiations on the mutual recognition. The driving licenses between Kosovo and Albania are driving licenses between Albanians on both sides of the border.

The same goes for the entire list of documents. As they don’t want us to be part of their roaming agreement, then we forge our deal on scrapping the roaming charges within the first six months of next year. Albania and Kosovo have their own agreement and no roaming fees will be applied between us. Farewell and goodbye!

The joint border crossing point of Morina and facilitation of cross-border flow of goods and people and exchanges between the two countries is the next step we will take. Unification of whole set of data of our joint system of Kosovo borders and Albania’s borders, to speed up the border and customs control procedures on the border between Kosovo and Albania is the next task the Ministries of Interior of both countries will carry out. The data on all persons entering and leaving the countries must be data in the external perimeter of Kosovo and Albania. Within the perimeter, we must function as two countries without border.

All these measures will give a fresh and significant impetus to the trade exchanges and at the same time, I think, will send an important message to all partners, and primary to Serbia. I have stated and I repeat it today. Our relation with Serbia is a strategic one, but, if Serbia sees it as an expression of a unilateral need, it is wrong. This is a mutual need and therefore Serbia should be ready to sit in the table with a one-faced, and not a two-faced approach. Even three-faced indeed, one for Kosovo, one for Albania and another one for the international community. It should decide which face it will use in the relations with the Albanians and we are ready to put on exactly the same face that Serbia will choose.

To conclude, I want to invite Prime Minister Haradinaj to support me in setting a funding for the two Ministries of Foreign Affairs to launch work on drafting an analytical and strategic document; Albania, Kosovo and the road towards unification of Albanians by 2025.

A demographic, economic and social of political systems. Of course, I know what they are going to say right way in Belgrade and elsewhere, but I mean Albanians’ unification as a necessity on the path towards European Union, which should also put an end to the two-faced approach; one for Albania and one for Kosovo. Albania is told that the accession talks will open today or tomorrow. Kosovo is told that visa regime will liberalized, whereas Serbia continues to open other chapters of membership negotiations and is succeeding in pursuing a three-faced approach, while we stick to one-faced one.

Our face is the red and black face and we are ready to face any common read and black challenges to grow the economy, prosperity and ensure the future of our nation with two states. Two states we want to integrate into the European Union, two states that abide by all principles of the international right and honour the will of our ancestors. We all descend from common ancestors and we are two states that do not intend to remain the smallest cog of the wheel in the boring history of this continent’s music, either be it in Brussels, or in Belgrade.

Thank you very much!

Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj’s remarks:

Ladies and gentlemen,

I have the distinct honor and privilege of opening the fifth meeting of the governments of the Republic of Albania and the Republic of Kosovo being held in Peja.

I am happy about the outcomes of this joint meeting and I am convinced that the opportunity to sign nine agreements and protocols of cooperation will lead to the unification of our economies, and not only, in a near future.

I know that Kosovo and Albania people expect much more from us and we will unstoppably continue to press ahead with the challenging tasks lying ahead.

By bringing development and prosperity we will honour the sacrifices of all generations for freedom and only by working hard and bringing development we will earn respect from everyone.

Peja that new to say “No” to partition back in1999, Peja that said “Yes” to the national and patriotic movements, Peja of Haxhi Zeka, Peja of June 1999, when it was burned to the ground and in a lot of pain, rose to never fall again by building main pillars of the state life.

Kosovo is today a signatory party with the EU, the Stabilization and Association Agreement, and is implementing the priorities of the European reform, and has successfully fulfilled the 95 requirements of its visa liberalisation roadmap.

Thus, just like any other nation and country, Kosovo and Kosovo citizens also expect its right to be respected by the European Union’s decision-making institutions.

But, Kosovo has not been waiting for the others. Instead, the country has carried out its home-works. In terms of security, Kosovo will complete the transformation process of the Kosovo Security Force by assuming a defence mandate in the next coming days; in economic terms, Kosovo is implementing major fiscal and economic reforms to mobilize its resources, while major energy investments are underway.

At a regional level, we are committed to bilateral cooperation with all countries in the region.

But, what distinguishes Kosovo is the alignment with the US as a global leader and our strategic ally.

Albania has always counted on Kosovo and can always count on us in the future, just like Kosovo counts on Albania as it demonstrated in 1999, the worst times of our nation.

Kosova is and will remain to its people, Kosova belong to our nation and allies.

God bless Kosovo!

God bless Albania!

God bless our allies!

Mr. Prime Minister, the floor is yours.

Agreements and protocols of cooperation signed between the two governments today:

1. Agreement on scrapping roaming charges.
2. Protocol on application of joint customs clearance procedures at the border crossing point of Morine-Vermice.
3. Cooperation agreement on public debt, foreign investments and relations with international financial institutions.
4. Memorandum of Understanding between Kosovo’s Industrial Property Agency and the General Directorate of Industrial Property of Albania.
5. Protocol between the Ministries of Agriculture on mutual recognition and unification of the animal health certificate forms for the livestock and products of animal origin.
6. Agreement on youth cooperation.
7. Agreement on establishment of the bilateral Albania-Kosovo Chamber of Commerce.
8. Agreement on mutual recognition of the driving licenses.
9. Agreement on cooperation in the field of health.