Rama in a first official visit to Kosovo

TIRANA, Sep 13 – New Prime Minister Edi Rama made his first visit abroad while in the post to neighboring Kosovo.
To be clear, on Friday he was only decreed and was still waiting for the parliament approval and the sworn-in ceremony.
That did not stop Kosovar counterpart Hashim Thaci to use all the protocol steps in the ceremony.
Both premiers said that the position of the Albanians in the region has never been better.
Rama also held a speech at the parliament and met with all top officials and political leaders stressing that “today is the best historic moment in the region”.
“Our foreign policy will not face problems with neighbors. We will do everything to guarantee full respect of the rights, freedom and pride of all Albanians wherever they are in this region”, said Rama.
Rama also noted that his goal of going to Kosovo was to open a new era of cooperation between Albania and Kosovo, and to further harmonize the common interests of the Albanians. “We agreed to hold the first mutual conference of the two governments and to begin the process of strategic mutual governance between Albania and Kosovo”, said Rama.
There is a common ambition of both countries to be active and to cooperate with other countries in the region that are still out of the united Europe, but have the ability to get closer to it.
Albania’s new premier also hailed the agreement on the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia as of great importance.
He said that starting with a joint cabinets’ meeting in November in Prizren, Kosovo, the ministers would work closer together in joint efforts to harmonize and create one market. He also said new steps would be taken for the education and sports and energy would start with the application of the transmission link funded from Germany.
There was also a moment of unease for Rama when MPs of the Democratic League of Kosovo walked out of Parliament allegedly for him not mentioning Ibrahim Rugova as a founder of the new Kosovo state.
Rama tried to ignore that fact and shortly after paid a formal visit at Rugova’s graveyard giving high considerations.
As usual that immediately turned into a political issue. In Tirana, the opposition harshly accused Rama of going to Kosovo to spark political division and support Thaci’s party ahead of elections there.
There came no reaction from Rama who only repeated his commitment to drastically change ties with Kosovo and giving high considerations for Rugova.