TIRANA, July 29 – Internationally renowned British journalist Tim Judah was in Tirana this week discussing the crisis in Ukraine after Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and possible implications in the Balkans, which he has been covering for the New York Review of Books biweekly magazine.
In a joint conference organized by the Albanian Institute for International Studies and the Albanian Media Institute, Judah, mostly known as the Balkans correspondent for The Economist, said Russia’s influence in the Balkans is not a major threat, considering the geopolitical map of the region which is surrounded by NATO member countries and its EU aspirations and minor trade exchanges with Russia.
In his latest Ukraine feature on the New York Review of Books, Judah describes Ukraine as “inside the deadlock.”
“There is a big gap between what leaders on either side want and what is attainable. On the Ukrainian side the maximum and, for now, unattainable objective is to reconquer the lost eastern territories. (No one is even talking about Crimea, which, as far as Russia is concerned, has formally become a part of the Russian state.) What is far more realistic, though, is for Ukraine to hold the line to prevent further losses, while over the next few years its armed forces are transformed into a far more formidable fighting force,” he wrote.
Judah also elaborated on the difficulties of reporting from Ukraine and especially Crimea, where he has been denied entry.
A representative of the Russian embassy in Tirana who was attending the panel intervened to say the case would be reviewed, adding “Crimea is not occupied, peace reigns there now and people do not regret about their choice.”
In his stay in Ukraine, Judah said he met members of the Albanian community who are very nostalgic about the country of their roots and keeping up traditions three centuries after they left Albania.
“What they want is cultural and language exchanges so that they can have teachers of Albanian language,” said Judah.
An estimated 5,000 ethnic Albanians with roots in the Korça area live in Ukraine, mostly in the Odessa region, southern Ukraine.
Judah announced he is writing a book on Ukraine. He is the author of three books on the Balkans including “The Serbs: History, Myth and the Destruction of Yugoslavia,” “Kosovo, War and Revenge” and “Kosovo: What Everyone Needs to Know.”
