Germany, Prime Minister Edi Rama in the panel “European Perspective of the Western Balkans”, part of Charlemagne Europa Forum

Dr. Jürgen Linden, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the "International Charlemagne Prize":I would like to open perhaps an important chapter of European history, the enlargement of the 6 countries in the Western Balkans. It might be a chapter of economy, it might be a chapter of cooperation, might be as well, a chapter of establishing democracy, making reforms, and stabilizing peace. None better than the Prime Minister of the Republic of Albania, can explain to us this project. I would like to open the floor, for his excellency Edi Rama. Prime Minister, the floor is yours to explain us the process, the development, perhaps even the obstacles of this process.

Prime Minister Edi Rama:Thank you very much. Good morning to everyone, and I am sorry I do not speak German, it is too difficult for me, and I am very honored to have this opportunity to be speaking in this forum, and also it is a pleasure that we can have a moment to talk about a part of Europe that is still struggling to be part of the European Union, while being in the middle of Europe, and in the same time, while being the only geographical reality in the history of maps that an entity of countries is surrounded by the EU border, which makes in fact the EU a unique case in the history of maps too, being the only political entity with an outside border that confides with itself, and an inside border which confided itself with the 6 WB countries.

So to come to Albania, you have to come out from the European Union, but into the middle of Europe, and this goes also for many migrants that came to Germany, especially in the big refugee crises of 2015, that they had to enter the EU through Greece, and get outside of the EU through North Macedonia and then reenter the EU through Croatia or Hungary. So it seems that the WB are there to witness the need to accomplish the project of the EU and in the meantime, it seems to me that the WB are there to witness that the term enlargement does not fit, it is no enlargement, because when you get some weight, you enlarge, but when you have to integrate parts of your body, you do not enlarge, you unite.

To unite with the EU of course we have to do our homework, and this goes without saying, but in the meantime, thanks to Vladimir Putin unfortunately, the EU realized that the geopolitical aspect is much more self-evident than it looked like in times where everybody had the illusion that wars were a problem of the past and they would never return again. So when the Russian aggression on Ukraine started, the EU attitude towards the WB changed for the good. And now its common sense that the unification of Europe is a must, and it is a must for the sake of the European union itself.

Now, talking about us, about Albania, we have a very special history that is incomparable to the history of other former communist countries, because we were isolated from both the west and the east, and for us both were two sides of the same medal.

So we were a North Korea in Europe for many years, while in the same time becoming the only country that after the fall of communism, did not have a communist party, and we still do not. In the meantime, our isolation made us the country that nowadays, based on the EU Barometer, is the most pro-EU country in Europe, including Germany.

For us, being part of the EU is as simple as essential as it was for the founding fathers when they started to build the EU. Being part of the EU for us is being part of a community of peace, cooperation, security. In other many realities, the EU is perceived as an ATM. For us it is not. For us its not about the money. It is about a perimeter of peace based on values. A perimeter of tolerance based on values. A perimeter of security based on values.

We are doing our best and of course it not easy, and I will not talk more, because I have learned than when you talk more about Albania and the Balkans, the less people understand, because it becomes more complicated. But I wanted to say that in the context of enlargement, there is a very interesting element, which relates to the famous slogan of the big wave of enlargement in 2004, where for many countries, getting in the EU was returning back home. In fact, for us it is different, because we were never part of it, but we dreamt of it always.

We were under the Ottoman Empire, we were the last one to leave the empire, and to become independent. Than we went through regimes that kept us at the gates of Europe but making impossible to imagine that one day our dream could be possible, and at the time, one of our most famous poets of the Albanian Renaissance wrote that "for us the sun rises where it sets", meaning the west.

But in the pace of integration you see that the countries that have more relations, in the way of living in a structure of institutions, had an easier time to reconnect with the EU. While the countries of the WB, did not have that structure, we have a much more difficult task because we have to build from scratch, we do not have a tradition of state, no tradition of academics, no tradition of religious associations, no tradition of civil society and so on, and that is why we value the EU as the most incredible know-how source to build institutions. It goes without saying that building institutions in a country where we are all cousins, is not easy, and building institutions in an era where social media are destroying many of the certainties and many of the references that were undisputable in the way communities built their lives and in the way parents educated their children, but we wanted to do it and we will do it. I do not know what will happen with the EU in the years to come, but for sure even if the EU disappears, Albania will still fight to be part of the EU.

Dr. Jürgen Linden:Thank you Prime Minister for the clear statements to approach the EU as soon as possible, but we are speaking about 6 different countries and the first question is, are they all agreeing with each other, and the second question would be, are there other influences outside the EU, for example Russian influences, since you are geographically between west and east?

Prime Minister Edi Rama:I think we are agreeing with each other more than any time in our history, and one of the reasons we are today in the best place we have ever been in terms of communicating and cooperation, is Angela Merkel. She did something very important for the history of the WB and for the pace of our integration to the European Union, by starting what is known today as the Berlin Process, and for the first time in our history, 6 leaders of the 6 countries thathave always been seen as the terrible guys, met in Berlin in 2014, exactly 10 years ago, and met not to kill each other, not to shout to each other, not to dispute who is the first and who came next, and who has the right to impose, and all the rest that have been the characteristics of our history, but met to discuss what we can do together to build a common future.

Dr. Jürgen Linden:That means that you are really agreeing with each other, all the 6 of you.

Prime Minister Edi Rama:That means that, first of all, I love Angela Merkel still. And secondly, that means that, since than, we started a process that brought us closer and closer, and today, we have an ongoing and routine communication.

While, as you know, because we were talking earlier, thanks to the European Commission and the leadership of Ursula Von der Leyenn, we now have a new Growth Plan for the Western Balkans, which is a product of this new consciousness in Brussels that our countries need to be helped to be ready for the EU.

But I just wanted to add something about Russia, if you do not mind. I would like to say because of our history we do not have no close relations and either the appetite for it, with Russia, because our dictator decided to leave the eastern block and the Warsaw Treaty exactly when Krushov decided to change the political line in Moscow. So, Albania remained loyal to Stalin, we had a Stalin statue in our very central part of the capital, and because of that, we do not have any appetite to get closer to Russia. So in 33 years since we got out of the darkness, there was never an official visit from our side, high level official visits to Moscow, and never high level visits from Moscow to Tirana, and we are not missing it. But for the other countries, excluding Kosovo, of course, because in Kosovo Russia is no influence, and Kosovo has no appetite, in the other countries Russia is influential, in different levels.

Dr. Jürgen Linden:You mentioned Ursula Von der Leyen and the proposals, the 4 pillars of this approach from the EU. Perhaps we can discuss them a bit, how far are you going there, what reforms actually mean, what is anti-corruption, for example; regional markets in between you and the European Fund of Investments.

Prime Minister Edi Rama: Listen, corruption is the mantra, is the key word that you hear when people speak in a European language for Albania and the Balkans. I want to make sure that you understand my view that fighting corruption is about state-building and modernization, is about institutions and is about creating systems that make impossible for corruption to interfere in the everyday life of people. And I take an example of the German Embassy in Tirana. Sometimes ago it was a problem in Albania to impose seatbelts while driving. So Albanians got their private cars after 50 years of no private property, no private cars, no private nothing, and they could not really deal with the seatbelts. But Albanians coming in Germany and living in Germany, they could not even imagine, to start driving without a seatbelt, and I have seen German Embassy people driving without a seatbelt in Tirana. Which means that it's not about people, it's about systems, it's about institutions, it's about the environment of law.

Corruption is born with freedom and human rights. To make corruption move from being the alternative of everything that you are asking, you have to have a state and institutions that are giving you what you are asking, and they are providing you the concretization of every right you have in the country you live, while preventing everybody else to not take what is by right yours. So it's a process, that's why I always say, the blessing of the country like ours is the European Union, because in many ways our start is similar to Iraq, Afghanistan, countries that got out of crazy dictatorships and of brutal totalitarianism, had to dream of freedom and had to dream about democracy. But how? It is not something you do on your own. They needed someone to tell them, to help them, to support them, to correct them and to make them crazy.

The EU does to us everything we need. It gives us all the tools of state-building, of institutions building, all the laws to adapt, and drives us crazy, because it is not easy.

Dr. Jürgen Linden:These 4 pillars, could they even mean that there is a twostep approach, firstly to enter the regional market and then to enjoy full membership?

Prime Minister Edi Rama:Listen, I think this is already something, because before, it was nothing. The problem is that while crisis and very difficult challenges are being present not because of choice, but because they happen, like the pandemic, like the war, Ukraine, and the EU has the instruments, to kind of smoothen the impacts on its own nations, while we are in the middle of Europe, and we don't. So all this packages, all this big programs of boosting back the economy, of supporting the internationalization, of dealing with the consequences of the pandemic, kept the EU in balance while we could not have immediate access to the vaccines, and we were in the middle of Europe, we eat Europe, we drink Europe, we talk Europe, we sleep with Europe, we wake up with Europe, through TV-s, and we were like fish out of water, our people were dying.

That's why I believe its time to think about a new status of the countries that are in negotiation process, which would be observing status, with no right to vote, but with the right to participate, to be in Brussels, to be in all corridors, to be in the European Parliament, with no right to vote, but in the mean time to understand how things works, build up knowledge and a sense of togetherness. While I do not believe, on the other hand, in the rush to full membership. First of all, it will not happen, but even if the member states, let's say, wake up one day and say, okay let's get these guys in, this would be bad for us. We need to do all the homework, because building a European state that works based on the rule of law, based on the institutions, is not to please Angela Merkel, or Olaf Scholz, or to please Ursula, it's about our own interest and it is about our children. We need to make the homework, rushing is like giving the driving license, without completing the courses, and then being exposed to the chances of crushing.

- Thank you very much for coming here to this region.

Prime Minister Edi Rama:How could I not come?

- As a former rapporteur for Albania's membership in the Council of Europe, I can say that Albania is part of Europe and I am happy to see that, step by step, you are getting closer to the European Union and I hope that you will become members. I have a question and it's question for you coming from the youth. Specifically, it is extremely important to keep young people in your country to build these institutions, your economy and so on. The western part of Europe already has a great shortage of personnel, computer scientists, doctors and they are looking to take people from abroad, from Senegal and other countries but also from European countries such as Albania. To me, this is a risk of development because it can weaken your position in the whole process instead of strengthening it. What is your opinion on this?

Prime Minister Edi Rama:Thank you for asking me the trickiest of questions. It's tricky because I don't know how to be diplomatic, I speak what I think and I have to say what I think. The problem I see is that old Europe, by which I mean Germany and all these good and great countries, are suffering demographically. Less and less children, an ever-increasing demand for labor, a big problem of how to deal with migration. So, it has turned into a war for fresh meat, how to get young people, so how to get young people from us, as much as possible.

It is no longer the time when Albanians or others from the Western Balkans were seen as a problem.

To put it all as it is: They are the most popular because they are white, because even when they are Muslim they don't find it too difficult to fit in, and even more than that, whether they are Muslim or Christian from the Western Balkans they are above all Europeans and they want to be European and they want to be part of it. So they come there. Then, how can countries like Albania or the Western Balkans be able to face this, how can we stop this, how can we stop it, how can we change the rhythm. Of course, the easiest answer is: "You are fighting corruption! You need to raise wages! You must do this and that!"

I am sorry, but how can we do all this and tell them: Here are your salaries. Are you a nurse? Here, get your salary, better than in Germany. Are you a doctor? Here, get your salary, better than in Germany.

Are you a computer scientist? Get your salary, better than going to work for big companies in Germany or elsewhere. It is impossible, it is simply impossible. Whoever thinks otherwise, does not think correctly. This is a big problem and we are trying to face it, we have made a lot of progress, we have gone from an average salary in the public sector of around 450 euros, to 900 euros in June. Salaries in the private sector are increasing very quickly, due to tourism and the demand for labor, but it is still a very big problem and it is a problem that Germany or even the West will not solve by taking Albanians. It's much bigger than that. If Germany wants to continue to be Germany in 2030, it will also need seven million new workers from its own demography Germany will not be at the level of its economy and its lifestyle. How is this resolved? How does this relate to all the walls and everything else? I do not know.

- I come from Croatia and I have a question related to the Balkan mindset and stigma, because you often said it yourself, the more you talk about Albania, the Balkans, the complex history or the current situation, the less people listen to it. At the same time, quite often the Balkans usually means something negative. How much do you think this affects your membership and that of other countries, because often, as far as I know, people neglect to see positive things. For example, religious diversity and peace between different religious beliefs.

Prime Minister Edi Rama: First of all, the Germans owe us a big debt, because the name Balkans was decided by a not very wise German, who visited our region, and looking at the mountains, he asked where we are, and the Turk who accompanied him said: Balkans, Balkans, Balkans, which actually means mountains, mountains, mountains, and he named it Balkans. So when they hear about the Balkans and don't feel good, the Germans should say, yes, we did it first.

Secondly. Yes, it's a complicated story, but I am very optimistic, because it's no longer what it used to be, it's much different, if we talk about Albania today, I am surprised because since last year Albania is in the German press for all the best reasons. "Wonderful place for tourism, come to Albania"and the Germans are realizing more and more that they have not been very aware that Albania is in fact a wonderful place and a place where you should go and not only Albania but also other countries of course, we have a complicated history, as I said, and we need what we need to do to change things and we are changing them and it will take time, but at least I do not see any more the stigma being a problem for us, neither in Germany nor in the Netherlands, thanks to Feyenoord who came to play the final in Tirana and brought thousands and thousands of Dutch tourists with them. There they realized that this was not a place where they risked being killed, kidnapped, raped or robbed, but it was a place where they could have fun, or do the entertainment they wanted, and we had so many drunken Dutch people in Tirana, and that many of them peed in the parks, it was not good for us, but it was heaven for them. So now we have become a destination for the Dutch, that's how it works. We have to go through these things too.

- We have one last question, because we are beyond the time set by the protocol and we need to finish.

Prime Minister Edi Rama: Listen, when you invite someone from the Balkans, forget the German protocol.

- Good. At least for part of the protocol.

- Dear Prime Minister! Part of you being a politician is that you were a sportsman and are interested in culture. Can you tell us about the situation of disabled people in your country and in the EU? I am asking from the perspective of a person who has Down syndrome. Thank you very much!

Prime Minister Edi Rama: Thank you and much respect to you! Now, I was once an athlete, now I only wear sports shoes, but that's it. I played basketball in the national team and my first game, my first game was in Germany, but a long, long time ago. A long time ago, in 1984. As far as disabled people are concerned, countries that are less developed than this country here, which is a model for all of us and I hope it remains such a model even though it is going through some difficult times, it is not easy for us, but we have done a lot so far and we are continuing. For example, one thing I am proud of is that when children with disabilities go to school, today in Albania they have an assistant teacher who accompanies them all the time in the classroom and takes care of them, and we also try to help families, we try to help especially single mothers, when they have children with disabilities. Of course, we need to do much more. We have an institute that is extraordinary thanks to a man who can't see. He is the Director of the Institute and has done something absolutely extraordinary for children who cannot see or hear. It is always humbling to answer these things because it can never be enough, but I think it's important that we have a lot of this sensitivity and try to do as much as we can.

- Thank you very much for your words. It was very interesting to hear your motivation for building the state, for building institutions. Since I work with the economy in Germany and Europe, what will you do for the construction of infrastructure in your country? What is the thing that Albania will be proud of in 10 years? You said we are a great source of knowledge for you, but what do you actually want to bring to the table?

Prime Minister Edi Rama:We are a source of entertainment for you, because you need some entertainment and of course introducing people from the Balkans into your family will make the family more cheerful and less depressed. I am sure of this, because you think a lot about what is good, but sometimes I believe that you do not understand how extraordinary what you have is, you do not sometimes understand that everyone else, not only in Albania, but everywhere, even in the EU, you are in a much better position than others.

I understand that it is very difficult for someone who is used to drinking champagne every day, to face the pressure of not having champagne every day.

While it is very easy to deal with someone who is used to eating bread and cheese one day and has to go without bread one day. Having said that, I believe that Albania is on the right track. The worst is over, we have left it behind. We are already growing. We have a tourism that is growing and I can tell you that based on the latest data of the Air Traffic Agency, Albania has the fastest growth in airports throughout Europe. We grew by about 220% in March, while Germany, I do not know, had -12% I think, compared to March of the period before the pandemic.

So we are a country blessed with many water resources, the second in Europe after Norway, so we have 100% renewable energy, but our energy is mainly based on hydro resources, while we are already trying to diversify. Our plan, based on real investment programs, is to be a net exporter of energy in 2029. To not depend on anyone, but only export energy.

We are trying to push the IT sector forward, while more and more companies are looking at Albania, but one thing I am proud of is that we have become an architectural center. We have excellent architects working with us, we have about seven Pritzker Prize winners developing projects in Albania, and Tirana is a city you should all visit. I am not advertising for the Ministry of Tourism, but I told you before, you should visit Tirana, because you will never regret it. It will be a nice surprise. We have better food than in Germany, there is no doubt about that. To eat well in Germany, you have to go to a good restaurant, while to eat well in Albania, it's enough to stop wherever you can.

We are very hospitable, we continue to believe in hugging and kissing friends, so if you miss kisses and hugs, come to Albania and you will have them in abundance.

-Prime Minister, thank you!

Prime Minister Edi Rama: Listen! I see a Jewish gentleman here in this hall and I want to tell you something. Hospitality is no joke for us. Hospitality for us is religion. We are Muslim, we are Catholic, we are Orthodox. I am Catholic, my wife is Muslim, the two children from previous joint ventures are Orthodox. The little one may decide to be of the Jewish faith, but our religion, above all religions, is hospitality.

In the first written code of Albania, the most important sentence is "Albanian's home belongs to the God and the host",not just the one who invites you as a friend, but anyone who knocks on the door, and this has made Albania the only country in Europe that counted more Jews after World War II than before it, because while Jews left other countries, they came to Albania to be protected by Albanians. According to this rule of hospitality, when the door knocks, it is God's will, you must open it and even if the enemy is behind that door, you cannot shoot him, you must welcome him home and you cannot touch him as long as he is within the perimeter of your property and in fact, in the Kanun, one of the most serious crimes is to betray a friend. A friend cannot be betrayed, otherwise you are cursed and excluded from all social activities, and you have only one obligation to fulfill, if your house is not to collapse. You must attend every funeral. A family member must attend every funeral of others, because after the funeral, coffee is drunk and when this person goes to drink the coffee and says "I'm sorry for your loss",the coffee is served to you on the floor. This is why the Catholic Church of Albania was a very special example among the Catholic Churches vis-à-vis the Jews, because the Catholic Church of Albania committed itself to making false baptisms, false documents to protect the Jews, and in the end no Jews surrendered to the Nazis.

Albania is a country among the righteous. There were only two people deported to Auschwitz and they were not Jews, because when the Nazis went to the house of an Albanian family and they looked for the two Jews hiding there, the man of the house said: "Yes, I have hidden them and I will hand them over to you, but please don't come in and don't dishonor our house" and handed over his two sons. They were two Albanians who were taken to Auschwitz because the Nazis believed they were the Jews they were looking for.

-Thank you very much! We look forward to your speech tomorrow, during the "Charlemagne" international award ceremony. For now, I want to thank you once again and wish you the best for your membership in the European Union, best wishes for your work, for your country. We are all convinced that Albania and all other Balkan countries at least belong to the European family. In that sense, thank you!

Prime Minister Edi Rama:Thank you, thank you very much! I only have one wish; I wish it was not boring!

- Not at all!

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