TIRANA, Sept 1 /ATA/ Prime Minister Edi Rama said on Monday at the 20th Bled Strategic Forum in Slovenia that, “I believe our decisive victory this time was largely due to the EU’s commitment and the call for everyone to rally around the flag to bring it into the EU.”
Sharing the panel with European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos, Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, and Montenegrin Prime Minister Milojko Spajić, Rama stated, “We have truly been fully supportive of all empires, and the empire we embraced by our choice was the European Union.”
“We are deeply committed to it, and by the way, I don’t believe there is any other place in Europe where you can run an election campaign precisely on the EU promise,” said Rama.
Rama further said, “Just a short while ago, I was in another room, in a different discussion, and someone from Slovenia told me that we are making good progress, but to be careful about what we wish for because we are already in the EU, and things aren’t going very well for us.”
“I replied, ‘Look, Slovenia is in such a strong position that when we consider everything you have — and everything we aspire to — it’s truly remarkable. However, there is one area where you seem to be struggling: optimism. You appear quite pessimistic because things are so flawless and beautiful, and there’s a fear that any disruption could cause harm,’” Rama remarked.
Rama went on to say that, meanwhile, Albania still has many areas that require ongoing improvement and adaptation.
The Prime Minister emphasized, “I believe Europe should serve as a meeting point for the world. Europe — and not just Europe, but the entire Western collective, at least until recently before the shift in America — must move away from imposing its way of life on others. We must safeguard our own way of life, but without selecting friends or partners based on their lifestyle choices.”
Rama stated, “If Europe expands with us, it becomes stronger and more compact because it doesn’t leave a part of its body open for microbes, viruses, infections, and so on to enter. And this is the key—if tomorrow things head in a different direction, this would be an open wound in the heart of Europe. Meanwhile, if we are inside, we are simply closing a very small space that could otherwise become a major problem.”
“We are the only real example in history and geography where the EU has two borders—an external border and an internal border—and within that internal border, it’s just me and him. So what kind of enlargement is this? Close that internal border. It’s as if entering the single market were China or someone else threatening Europe, whereas, among other things, we bring entertainment, optimism, youth, and a zest for life,” Rama said.
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