TIRANA TIMES
With the world’s second largest economy, and its continuing rise, China is and will continue to be a global power. So when its foreign minister chooses to visit a small country like Albania it is certainly an important diplomatic event in Tirana.
But what makes the visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi more important is that he made it clear the special relationship Albania and China had in the 1960s and 1970s has not been forgotten by the Chinese. And although both countries have changed dramatically since then, that history and Albania’s image in the eyes of the Chinese offers Albania a unique opportunity to develop bilateral relations that have not been fully explored so far.
Albania, then under communist rule, was one of very few countries to strongly support international efforts of the People’s Republic of China in its quest to establish itself at the United Nations and beyond. It is a fact China appreciates and values. In a written interview with the Albanian press, the Chinese foreign minister said people of his generation retain a strong fondness for Albania. “We will never forget that Albania is one of the first countries to establish diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China,” he noted.
Unfortunately, Albania’s communist regime cut off its ties to China at the worst time – just as Beijing was opening up to stronger ties with the West. For Albania itself, the separation was disastrous because without its economic and aid ties to China, Albania went into a frightening economic abyss. That economic hardship ultimately led to the economic end of Albania’s communist system.
Ideological motives of separation aside, there is clearly a meaningful and positive inheritance that has been left from the relations between the two countries before 1990.
The current Chinese leadership looks to the past with a kind of nostalgia for Albania, and the Albanian government should use it to strengthen relations which the rising global power, says Albert Rakipi of the Albanian Institute for International Studies.
There is currently a generation of Chinese leaders that might still remember a couple of Albanian folks songs made popular in China during the 1970s, but as time goes by, that affinity might be lost. That’s why now is the best time to build on the heritage of the past.
To be sure, there has been plenty of talk from Albanian officials on this issue, but the Albanian government seems to lack concrete ideas and the clear vision to strengthen relations which with an economic giant like China.
All Albanian governments, whether they have been run by Democrats or Socialists, have said they are willing to strengthen relations with China, but they have often looked for short-term actions and policies that serve their own political interests and not necessarily the long-term interests of the country. That needs to change. There needs to be more Chinese investment in Albania in priority areas for China like energy, minerals and tourism.
Albania’s priority to be part of a strong Euro-Atlantic community is not mutually exclusive with a strong economic relationship with China. In fact many of our Euro-Atlantic partners already have such a relationship in place.
Experts at the Albanian Institute for International Studies note that Albania should give priority to its relationship with China because Albania now stands to profit far more from a strong relationship than a giant like China does. If the Albanian government asserts that it wants to a have a 360-degree foreign policy it would be very short sighted if its radar misses a giant like China.
Non-governmental actors like think tanks and research centers should do the same, say experts at AIIS, which recently signed cooperation agreements with some the most important international relations institutes
