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“Although other governments are also interested, the migration agreement between Albania and Italy is unique,” said Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama. “Financial Times”.
Commenting on Rama’s remarks, British newspapers said he had “destroyed the hopes of several EU countries to repeat the deal”.
Rome and Tirana agreed last year to set up centers in Albania where thousands of migrants bound for Italy will be registered and then wait for Italian officials to review their asylum applications.
The plan has drawn criticism from human rights groups but has also attracted interest from some centre-right governments in Europe, with the centre-right European People’s Party even making it part of its election platform for the European Parliament elections in June.
“It is unique, 100% unique,” Rama told the Financial Times, saying he had been approached by other governments to see if the deal could be repeated with Italy.
“I said no. Because it didn’t make sense to me. Italy is very special to us, it’s not just a strategic relationship. It’s a deep-rooted friendship,” Rama said.
Rama also said the agreement with Italy built on a long history of mutual law enforcement, with the Italian coast guard helping Albania control immigration in the 1990s and more recently working together to combat drug smuggling.
Critics say the plan is legally problematic and costly. But it is not a new idea.
Western partners have been trying to get Albania to help the migrants since Albania took in thousands of Afghans exposed to the Taliban after the withdrawal of Western forces in 2020. The list starts with the British Prime Minister.
“Boris Johnson called me and told me he admired my leadership and that we should do something together,” Rama recalled.
“Let’s make a deal where the UK takes the illegal immigrants to Albania, keeps them there, processes them. I said, sorry, that’s not possible,” Rama added.
Rama said unlike Italy’s protocol, which allows for up to 3,000 people at a time, the UK’s agreement is not a “fixed number”.
“This is for all those who go to BM… as a transit. I said no way. Then, we have others that I won’t mention. It is one of the richest countries in Europe,” he added.
He warned against viewing immigration as a security issue, particularly for governments trying to relocate migrants.
“This problem cannot be solved by shifting the issue,” Rama said.
“Besides Albania, other Balkan countries could also help if the process is well structured and in compliance with international law,” he said.
But Europe has turned it into an ideological and electoral issue, forgetting the need to avoid a “demographic winter” and economic recession.
Over the years, more than a million Albanians have emigrated to the EU and the UK, accounting for a third of the country’s total population.
“The war in Ukraine has finally changed the rules of the game for eastward enlargement,” Rama said, marking a fine record for the outgoing European Commission.
“Besides, thanks to Vladimir Putin, change has already happened,” he added.
“The EU’s new proposed plan involves Western Balkan countries in practical cooperation, such as easy and cheap money transfers or reduced bureaucracy in cross-border trade, which would have been unthinkable five years ago,” he said.
“It’s not about the money,” Rama added, referring to the 6 billion euro package offered to the Balkans – an amount considered modest by most countries in the region.
“It’s about creating pathways to inclusion and having the same conditions as members if you are not yet a member,” he stressed.
Rama criticized the EU’s slow eastward expansion process, noting that the EU’s moral authority is weakening.
“Europe is falling apart,” he said.
“We still see Europe as a place that can protect itself from nationalist outbreaks that lead to conflict and war. (But) nationalist movements in Europe are not only finding a place in politics, they are also infecting or influencing (other movements),” Rama concluded for the Financial Times.
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