Greek delays and economic insecurity arrive in Albania as the country’s second largest economic partner goes through financial and social tough times.
TIRANA, Feb. 10 – Delays mounted on both sides of the border as customs checkpoints in the three international crossing between Albania and Greece were closed on Wednesday. Public service workers in Greece had a one-day strike to protest plans to cut pensions and freeze wages.
Virtually all flights in and out of Greece were suspended, including the daily flights to Tirana, as Greek air-traffic controllers joined the strike.
The Greek and Albanian economies are strongly intertwined as the EU member is Albania’s second largest trading partner. It is also host of hundreds of thousands of Albanian immigrants. Greek companies also have a very strong presence in the Albanian markets.
The problem is that the Greek economy is in serious trouble, and the government has to take hard measures to improve the situation. So Greek public sector employees were protesting a series of harsh austerity measures announced by the government to tackle the country’s dire financial problems.
Thousands of teachers, doctors, nurses, train workers and air-traffic controllers took part in the 24-hour work stoppage.
These measures were sparked by a debt crisis which has increased concerns about the stability of the euro.
The euro, which plays an important role in how Albania’s own currency performs, is facing one of its biggest tests of its decade-old existence. The fiscal woes of Greece are sparking fears in the financial markets that Athens will default on its debt – and concerns about other weak euro economies.
The euro fell sharply this week, hitting its lowest level against the U.S. dollar since last May.
As a direct result, the Albanian lek was also sharply devalued against the U.S. dollar.
Much of the concern in financial markets has been centered on Greece, which is struggling to curb a soaring deficit. Greece’s budget deficit is, at 12.7 percent of GDP, more than four times higher than euro zone rules allow. Its debt is about $419 billion.
Financial measures announced by the Greek government on Tuesday involve changes to income, taxation and include salary freezes and cutbacks in benefits. The government also announced plans to raise the country’s retirement age in order to save money on pensions.
Joaquin Almunia, the EU Economic Affairs Commissioner welcomed the urgent measures introduced by the Greek government to put their finances in order.
“We share the objectives and targets established by the Greek authorities in their stability program to correct the balances of the Greek economy, both the fiscal imbalances and other economic imbalances,” he said.
Protest demonstrations and marches, which have brought the country to a stand still, have been taking place throughout the day in downtown Athens and throughout Greece.
The cost of borrowing for the government in Greece has been rising, sparking concerns that in the coming months Athens will find it impossible to borrow the money it needs – and might have to be bailed out by the European Union.
