TIRANA, Oct 24 /ATA/ – Italy remains Albania’s strongest ally and key supporter in its path toward European Union membership, the Chairman of Socialist Party’s parliamentary group, Taulant Balla said on Friday.
Speaking at a conference in Rome on the rights of ethno-linguistic minorities, with a focus on the Italo-Albanian (Arbëresh) community, organized by the Sapienza Foundation in memory of constitutional scholar Costantino Mortati, Balla praised Italy’s enduring backing for Albania’s EU integration.
“In this new phase of European transformation and enlargement, Italy remains our greatest ally and natural strategic partner – a country that believed early in Albania’s and the Western Balkans’ European future,” Balla said.
The Socialist official noted that Albania has opened five of six negotiating clusters with the EU and is advancing deep reforms in justice, public administration and digitalization – achievements he said were also the result of Italy’s friendship and support.
Balla described the Arbëresh community, present in Italy for more than five centuries, as “a historic bridge connecting our two peoples,” praising its preservation of the Albanian language and traditions while fully integrating into Italian society.
He also highlighted the contribution of Albania’s modern diaspora in Italy, saying many Albanians who emigrated after the 1990s are now Italian citizens but remain culturally linked to their homeland, strengthening cooperation between the two nations.
/gj.m/r.e/a.f/u.sh/
