Albanian president attends a special summit, meets U.S. vice president
ZAGREB, Nov. 26 – Albanian President Bujar Nishani joined southeast and central European leaders this week in their pledge for closer cooperation on combating terrorism and dealing with the regional refugee crisis that has overwhelmed the European Union.
The pledge was made Wednesday in the Croatian capital, Zagreb, at an annual summit also attended by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and the president of the European Council, Donald Tusk.
A declaration issued after the summit said the migrant crisis poses an “unprecedented” humanitarian and security challenge, “requiring dialogue and agreement to better protect the EU’s external borders.”
The wave of refugees fleeing unrest in the Middle East and North Africa has become a source of tension among the countries on the migrant corridor – Greece, Macedonia, Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia. It has also presented a major political and security challenge for those countries.
“The refugee crisis is straining the resources of the countries in the region,” Biden said. “It is clear there is a need to improve cross-border cooperation, information sharing to deal with the flow of refugees, while stepping up the capability to counter the terrorist threats as well.”
In addition to Nishani, also in attendance at the summit were the leaders of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia and Serbia.
The annual gathering, held regularly since 2013, brings together presidents of all the countries of the region to promote cooperation and European integration.
The summits are usually hosted by Slovenia or Croatia, the only two Balkan countries that are members of the European Union.
