TIRANA TIMES – TIRANA, April 6
EU member Estonia will support Albania in all necessary reforms needed to bring Albania closer to EU membeship, Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip said during a visit to Albania this week where he met with his Albanian counterpart Sali Berisha and took part at a joint Albanian-Estonian business forum.
Both premiers noted that the biggest potential in co-operation between the two countries lie in the field of information and communications technology.
Both premiers noted that the biggest potential in co-operation between the two countries lie in the field of information and communications technology.
Ansip assured Berisha that Estonia supports Albania’s progress towards the European Union and is prepared to share its reform experiences with Albania. Estonia’s experience indicated that homework and consistency in carrying out reforms are of primary importance in acceding to the EU.
“Estonia’s experience with reforms was a positive one as we carried them for ourselves, not for anyone else,” said Ansip, who also added that the accession to the EU does not only require meeting economic criteria, but also political ones.
Berisha thanked Estonia for the aid adding that Albania was most interested in Estonia’s experiences with eGovernment and public e-services.
Ansip also said they supported the visa liberalization for Albania.
Albania expects that the EU will decide on the visa-free regime for the country likely this summer. It is also to hand over the answers to some 2,280 questions of the EU questionnaire along its request for the candidate status into the bloc.
The two countries also signed a deal on lifting bilateral taxation and preventing fiscal evasion.
They urged businesses in both countries to increase their cooperation.
“I invite you to invest in this country which is small but with a great potential. The biggest potential the country offers are energy, tourism, production and mines,” Berisha said at the forum.
Berisha said Albania’s geographic position, its natural resources make the country one of the best ones to invest in energy.
