TIRANA, June 1 – The visit of Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic to Tirana and meetings with his counterpart, Edi Rama, has been praised by international actors.
Washington praised both Vucic and Rama for trying to move on from the conflicts of the past toward a new era of friendship and cooperation in the Balkans.
“The United States congratulates Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic and Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama on the first official visit by a Serbian Prime Minister to Tirana on May 27th,” the U.S. State Department said.
Vucic’s historic visit comes six months after Prime Minister Rama visited Belgrade in the first such visit by an Albanian prime minister in nearly 70 years, the statement noted.
“We congratulate these leaders for reaffirming their mutual commitment to strengthening cooperation between their two countries and contributing to peace, prosperity, and stability in the Balkans region,” said Jeff Rathke, director of the State Department Press Office.
Vucic visited Tirana for two days on May 27 and 28 and attended a forum for economic collaboration along with other heads of government, where leaders tried to show good will although several old disputes resurfaced.
At the end of the visit, Vucic thanked Albania for its hospitality, saying that the visit was not easy for his position within Serbia, but he hoped that the Serbian people would see the need for closer collaboration between the two countries.
Relations between Albania and Serbia had been traditionally difficult.
Serbia and Albania remain at loggerheads over the 1999 war for independence in the former province of Kosovo, however.
Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, and it is now recognized by more than 100 countries worldwide, but not by Serbia, Russia and China.
