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Lulzim Basha appointed minister of foreign affairs

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18 years ago
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TIRANA, April 30 – Lulzim Basha will be the new minister of foreign affairs. President Alfred Moisiu appointed Basha, 35, on Monday, April 20 as the new foreign minister to replace Besnik Mustafaj who resigned last week. Basha goes to the new post after 20 months of experience as the minister of public affairs, transport and telecommunications. Basha is a newcomer to the Democratic Party. Only six months ahead of the July 2005 parliamentary elections Basha, together with a group of youngsters, brought back Sali Berisha to power after eight years of opposition.
Basha’s move to the head of diplomacy was an obligatory one after a surprise resignation by Mustafaj, one of the key figures in the Democratic Party and one of the most important collaborators with Berisha.
Mustafaj’s resignation was a complete surprise considering that he was scheduled to visit the United States State Department to meet with Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice. President George W. Bush is also expected to visit Albania June 10 as part of a European tour. Such an important agenda, together with the anticipated discussions in which the status of Kosova is expected to be resolved, did not stop Mustafaj from resigning.
Though publicly justified because of being ‘tired,’ the resignation seems to be linked with the management of foreign affairs. Local experts explain Mustafaj’s resignation was due to his refusal to contend with the strong and unusurped personality of his boss, Prime Minister Salli Berisha. It seemed Mustafaj was no longer willing to collaborate on foreign policy with Berisha.
The obligatory reshuffling of the cabinet after Mustafaj’s resignation whetted the appetite of the smaller coalition parties. One of them, the Christian Democrats who currently control the health ministry, gave an ultimatum to Berisha for another post in the cabinet. The opposition also criticized Basha’s arrival at the new post. Independent analysts say, however, that to cope with a surprise resignation from Mustafaj Berisha made one of the best candidates of the Democratic Party the new minister.
Albert Rakipi, professor of international relations, head of the Albanian Institute for International Studies and a think tank on foreign and security policy, says there will be no changes in Albania’s foreign policy. There could be nuances on the style, but in essence there will be no change. Albania hopes to get an invitation for full membership into NATO next year, following its signing the Stabilization and Association Agreement with the European Union last year.
President Moisiu’s Monday decree of Basha as the new foreign minister, and also Sokol Olldashi to replace Basha at the Ministry of Public Affairs, Transport and Telecommunications were swiftly sent to the parliament for confirmation. The presidential decrees were approved when voted by the parliament later Monday. At this moment, the center-right governing coalition is confronted with its internal functioning. Earlier this month Berisha reshuffled his government to replace three ministers and his vice premier. There were no surprises during the parliamentary vote for the new ministers as the ruling majority, led by the Democrats, had the required numbers to approve the appointments.

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