I welcome Ambassador Zef Mazi, the Chief Negotiator for Albania's accession to the European Union.
Mr Mazi relayed the actions taken by the Albanian side in order to proceed towards commencing accession negotiations.
As you are aware, Greece has been supporting the enlargement of the European Union towards the Western Balkans since 2003. During last April’s Zagreb Summit, our country jointly decided with our other European partners both on commencing negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia and on changing the negotiating framework with regard to the European Union's enlargement roadmap.
We are united with Albania by geography, history and the members of the Greek national minority in Albania, as well as the Albanians who live and work in Greece, of course — and it is in our strategic interest to resolve many of the issues between us before the commencement of accession negotiations is finalised, i.e. before the first Intergovernmental Meeting.
The recognition of the Greek national minority and the right to self-identification, the recognition of the property rights of Greeks in Albania and the resolution of any disputes regarding our bilateral issues are key steps towards building a strategic relationship of trust that will itself gain momentum, as the Prime Minister said yesterday following his meeting with the Albanian Prime Minister, Mr Rama.
Mr Mazi and I had a very honest, in-depth discussion. I am pleased that he has taken on this role, because he truly understands not only the European environment and the challenges that lie ahead, but also the opportunities that are emerging.
I would like to thank him for his visit — which, it should be noted, is one of the first conducted in the context of his tour of European countries — and wish him every success in his work.
September 16, 2020