Topalli secures Budapest integration support

TIRANA, Sep 21 – Parliament Speaker Jozefina Topalli made a visit to Hungary where she met with her counterpart and other top Hungarian officials.
Topalli took part in the fourth regional conference of Parliamentary Speakers of the Western Balkans, “NATO cooperation and the integration process into EU of the Western Balkan countries,” held in Budapest.
Topalli was invited to present one of the main speeches of the conference and to bring the experience and the model of Albania regarding NATO membership and the path toward European integration.
“The Integration of Albania and the Western Balkans into the EU is important for you but also for the EU itself,” said Hungarian Parliament Speaker Bela Katona.
“With regards to the liberalization of the visa regime you are knocking on open doors,” he said, pledging not only Hungary’s support as an EU country, but also for its influence on other European countries in order to accelerate Albania’s membership into the European Union.
“We will lobby for you,” said Katona, adding that the excellent relations between Hungary and Albania will have their influence on the very important upcoming months of the Hungarian EU Presidency.
In a years time Hungary takes the European Union presidency.
Katona underlined that even during the period prior to taking over the EU Presidency, Hungary will be a protective umbrella for the Western Balkans and will use all its political and diplomatic potential for this region’s membership as soon as possible.
Katona said Hungary understands best the necessity of Albania’s membership in the family which belongs to, and especially would strongly support visa liberalization for a country that has suffered a long time in isolation.
Budapest officials pledged they will be the lawyer of the integrated processes of western Balkans.
Budapest was the first to ratify the protocol of Albania’s membership in NATO, among the first to ratify the SAA. The organization of this conference was another evidence of its continuing support for this region.
The conference stressed that Albania and Croatia’s membership in NATO brought a profound change in the structuring of regional security, as well as of the Alliance, but the work in the Western Balkans is not completed yet.
Accelerating the integration of this region into the Euro-Atlantic structures is important not only for the region, but also for the European Union and NATO.
The priorities of the new mandate, particularly of foreign policy, visa liberalization and integration into the EU, were the main points of Topalli’s speech.
She also exploited the meeting to talk to her counterparts of Croatia, FYROM, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia and Vojvodina.
Albania, as a NATO member, will continue to prioritize relations with countries of the region, working to strengthen political cooperation, economic and social development with the clear objective the EU membership.
On Kosovo, Topalli said that Albania would continue its strong support to the recognition of its independence, its membership into the UN and other international bodies as well, adding she firmly believed that Kosovo will soon be represented in such regional round tables.
Katona said Kosovo would be invited to an informal meeting of Foreign Ministers of the region in a month time. Also the Speaker of Kosovo Parliament would be on an official visit to Hungary.