Prime Minister Edi Rama is on a visit to Bavaria, Germany, to attend the annual strategy meeting of the Christian Social Union (CSU) party at an invitation of the Bavarian Premier Markus Söder. The government head addressed the European Union’s leadership on the European challenges, Albania as a regional leader and ways to further strengthen the bilateral ties with Germany and Bavaria in particular through economic, political, trade and cultural cooperation.
After the meeting with the CSU parliamentary group, PM Rama appeared at a joint press conference with the Bavarian State Premier Markus Söder, Chair of the parliamentary group of the Christian Social Union (CSU) Klaus Holetschek, and the European Parliament member Manfred Weber.
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Prime Minister Edi Rama: Thank you! Thank you very much. I feel humbler and more honored than ever to be invited as a guest of honor by my very precious and dear friend Markus Söder and the CSU group for this extraordinary moment of exchanges, but also of a European feel.
For those who don’t know, around 40 years ago, Franz Josef Strauss visited a totally isolated and secretive country. Back then we were Europe’s North Korea. His visit was a sudden glimmer of hope. Shortly after, the German-Albania ties were reestablished a few years later. Since then, if you were to ask Albanians, there is a special relation with the state of Bavaria and, definitely, Bayern Munich has played its role – I can’t deny it – but it’s not just about football anymore, it’s about something more profound.
Thousands of Albanians live here and they can’t be more grateful and more fulfilled for being part of the economy and Bavarian community efforts.
We certainly discussed the way Albania can contribute to the efforts to combat illegal immigration under the agreement we have signed with Italy.
First and foremost, I have to say that Albania is not the solution, as we are very small and we lack the tools to be the right solution. Second, I would also like to say that the solution doesn’t even lie in the hands of a great country like Germany. However, Albania can do its part to contribute to this solution, just like any other European country should do their part, because this challenge requires a common pan-European response.
Any independent effort is doomed to bring about consequences that could turn out to be irreparable for the future and that’s why the whole European family must stay united and agree on a collective response and not resort to various, diverse solutions that sometimes have nothing to do with the future generations, but with the daily politics.
We are here. We wish to become part of the solution. We wish to be part of the effort. We are not the EU, but we are the E without the B, and therefore nobody can decide about us whether we are Europeans, because this has been already decided by God Almighty and by the geography that has located us right at heart of Europe and the European Union is the only reality in history of maps with external and internal borders. No other similar reality has ever existed in history.
So one enters the EU territory and to come to Albania one should leave Europe. It’s just a 1.5 hour flight from here and we’re right in the middle of Europe.
We wish to become a full part of Europe. To this end, we should deliver. We are already doing good things in many areas. Our economy is progressing well and Albania’s tourism is thriving. By the way, I invite all of you to come and visit us. You won’t regret and you would definitely want to return. We certainly want to do things with the government of Bavaria and we would be very happy to be of assistance.
This is my approach. We stand together for whatever we can and as far as this can be useful. However, we are small and not rich, but being small and not rich does not stop us from being together on a moral level when you are part of a family and when you know your place and how to honor this place of yours in the family.
Thank you!
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Thank you! First of all, it is important to hear from both sides here in Germany that what we are doing doesn’t infringe any European and human values, because it was not obvious when we embarked on this thing and we faced many critics, especially from my Socialist counterparts in Europe. But it is pretty clear for me. If this agreement was to be signed between, let’s suppose, between Italy and the Czech Republic or if Albania was not to be Albania, but it were Slovakia instead, nobody would have talked about it, because such a deal would have been the most natural thing to happen – European solidarity – and there is an agreement, if I am not mistaken, within the European Union, based on the redistribution concept, which means that Italy is cursed for being the first onshore territory off the Mediterranean to be seen from Africa and it can’t be a curse to Germany.
So all the countries should take part and the fact that we are doing precisely what the European agreement stipulates, namely establishing a reception centre to process all the procedures based on the European laws and it should not be a reason to raise another senseless, useless and political conflict. Many political conflicts take place due to narrow political interests, when it comes to this topic.
Addressing the immigrant plight is not a matter concerning the leftist or rightist parties only, but it is an issue of what Europe will be in the next ten years; how this continent and these countries will look like in 2040 and in 2050. And this is the responsibility of the leadership and those who have been elected for this.
We could have wished that something else was to be done, but we should deal with it together. It is not something easy, it is not a very pleasant topic to deal with because it is a subject of so many discussions, but we have to make our contribution and it does not matter if we are not EU members.
It is our duty to behave as honorable, dignified, and fully trusted members of this community.
It doesn’t matter that you are the EU and that we are the E without the U. It doesn’t matter at all. This is the way I see it and this is certainly an effort. Markus put it right, saying we need to wait and see how it would work, because this is something new. Lessons will be drawn, adaptations will be made and other countries may follow the suit later. But you were speaking about Türkiye, because Türkiye is the source of the Balkan corridor. In a nutshell, should a fresh wave of immigrants take place, the Balkan corridor would somehow become the main route. So, why not try and find a collective solution in advance together with the countries along the Balkan route, mainly North Macedonia and Serbia. These are solutions, which are good will efforts at least and I don’t see it as a political line. A Socialist government is in office in Albania, while the Italian government is not a Socialist one – to say the least – but tackling the immigrants plight is neither a Socialist nor a Christian-Socialist or a Christian-Democrat matter, but it is a collective problem that should be solved of all of those who are tasked with representing the citizens of Europe and they should work together to deliver and do this for the European citizens.
