TIRANA, Oct. 20 – Prime Minister Edi Rama’s comments in Belgrade last week have led to debate in Albania and Kosovo, with critics accusing the Albanian prime minister of speaking on behalf of Prishtina when he has no right to do so.
Rama attended the Belgrade Security Forum and said that Serbia’s recognition of Kosovo’s independence would open the “door for closer collaboration in the region.”
During his address, Rama made several remarks about the ongoing disputes involving Serbia and Kosovo which still straddle the divide between the two countries such as the issue of the huge mining complex of Trepca, which was recently put under Prishtina’s control, a move Serbia considers a theft of its assets.
Rama said Trepca is located on the territory of Kosovo hence it belongs to the people of Kosovo.
“You can’t possibly be thinking about moving it. … People need to understand that the Trepca mine is on Kosovo territory and that it belongs to the people of Kosovo, regardless of whether they are Serbs or Albanians,” Rama said in the debate on Serbian-Albanian relations with Serbian Prime Minister Aleksander Vucic.
The statement led to some analysts in Prishtina to say that Rama had no right to speak out on behalf of Kosovo and that Serbia was using the situation to delegitimize Prishtina’s position as an equal in its negotiations with Belgrade.
Kosovo’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Enver Hoxhaj told TVArt in Macedonia that Kosovo is the only player in the normalization of relations with Serbia.
“Kosovo alone is a political player in the normalization of this relationship,” he said, indicating official displeasure in Kosovo over Rama’s comments. “Kosovo is an independent state and Albania is not a global actor as the US and EU are, while the latter two have instruments that can impact [on the dialogue].”
Meanwhile, the Albanian ambassador to Kosovo, Qemal Minxhozi said that this was a non-existing issue that was dividing both sides and the whole situation was overblown.
“Prime Minister Rama did not speak in the name of Kosovo but in the interest of Kosovo,” he said in an interview for a newspaper in Kosovo, published on Oct. 17.
“Kosovo is an independent democratic state like Albania. But this does not mean that Rama cannot speak for the interests of Kosovo, of Albania, and of all the region,” Minxhozi said.
Parliament’s foreign affairs committee discusses matter
Albania’s Parliamentary Committee for Foreign Affairs, which includes several foreign ministers in its ranks, met this week to discuss the country’s relations with the neighbors, including the latest tone of discussion with Kosovo.
The committee’s deputy chairman, Democratic Party’s Aldo Bumci, said Albania has hit the lowest point in its relations with Kosovo.
“We are at a crisis. Kosovo is the only problem that exists in relations between Albania and Serbia,” Bumci said. “Rama’s meetings with Serbian leaders might have overshadowed Kosovo. Tirana is damaging the Prishtina-Belgrade dimension.”
The committee’s chairwoman, the Socialist Party’s Arta Dade criticized remarks made by Kosovo’s Foreign Minister Enver Hoxhaj who recently said that Prishtina does not need Tirana in its dialogue with Serbia.
“Kosovo would not be where it is now, if it weren’t for the international factor, but also if it weren’t for us. If there are inexperienced politicians out there that are not aware of this, then we should show them,” Dade said.
The Committee discussed issues involving relations with Greece behind closed doors, amidst claims that Athens has made concrete proposals about the maritime agreement, the rights of minorities and Cham issue.
