The government head underlined that Albania has entered a new phase of EU accession talks after opening all negotiating chapters and was beginning to move towards closing them.

“Albania is now at the stage where, having opened all the negotiating chapters for EU membership, it is starting to move into the phase of closing them, with the aim of completing the long journey towards joining Europe by 2030,” Rama said.

He noted that the goal was for Albania to have a seat at the EU table as a member with equal rights and an equal position within the European family.

Rama also highlighted Albania’s tourism growth, saying the country now attracts around 12 million visitors a year.

He said Albania had recorded significant growth in air traffic in recent years and that its main airport had overtaken Belgrade in passenger numbers.

“Today, Albania has become a country attracting 12 million visitors a year. For the fifth or sixth consecutive year, it has had the fastest-growing airport in the region, and not only the strongest relative growth, but also the airport with the largest number of passengers, surpassing what for nearly a century or more had been the region’s main airport, Belgrade,” Rama said.

/m.q/j.p/u.sh/

“Michigan is home to one of the strongest Albanian hearts in America,” Rama said at the start of his remarks.

Referring to protests over the planned Zvernec project, which have adopted the flamingos of the Narta Lagoon as their symbol, Rama recalled a case in Michigan several years ago when a group of goose hunters first spotted a flamingo.

He said the U.S. bird-recording authority officially certified the sighting as an extremely rare occurrence.

“But as you know, this summer the flamingo became Albania’s most popular figure. It left the lagoon, came to Tirana, took over the boulevards, screens and digital spaces, and attracted attention around the world,” Rama said.

He said that until a few years ago, few would have imagined that such a bird could put Albania at the centre of an international debate over nature, development, tourism and “Trumpism.”

“Beyond the latter, which helped globalise the Zvërnec flamingo, the June protests has been significant because they attracted both public attention and support, including from Albanians in the diaspora,” Rama added.

The government head said damage to nature and wildlife in Albania had in the past failed to generate a strong public response.

He attributed the change to rising expectations and a growing belief that Albania could do more.

“Today, when many things have changed, Albanians have begun to live with the idea that ‘there can be something better’. And it was precisely this new attitude of society that the protest cemented,” Rama said.

“A society that demands more is a society that has risen, that has seen the horizon and no longer accepts lowering its gaze,” he added.

Rama concluded by calling for greater individual and social responsibility, saying that higher expectations of government and the state should be accompanied by higher expectations of oneself and respect for differing views.

“Precisely because we have learned to demand more from the government, the state and our country, we must also learn to demand more from ourselves, as part of the new Albanian society, especially in how we view one another when our views differ,” Rama said.

/gj.m/j.p/u.sh/

Sheko told Rama that the company has a fleet of more than 200 trucks and around 500 trailers and works with Ford, General Motors and Chrysler.

“Universal Transport has come a long way. It has not been easy and we have faced a difficult road, but we made it,” Sheko said, adding that the company also operates in Albania.

The entrepreneur said Universal Transport operates in several U.S. states and is working with the European University of Albania to employ several students and provide them with job opportunities.

He thanked Rama for what he described as Albania’s modernisation and the country’s improved image, saying this had encouraged successful investors and businesspeople to consider investing there.

“I think each of us also has a responsibility to do something for our country,” Sheko told Rama.

/m.m/a.f/r.e/u.sh/

Rama said his visit would begin on Sunday afternoon in Michigan, where he is due to meet with the Albanian community.

“This time, the week of the United Nations in America begins this afternoon with and for Albanians in Michigan, where I have the honour of being invited by the community and invite anyone who wishes to join us,” Rama wrote on social media.

Rama is accompanied on the U.S. trip by his wife, Linda Rama, and an official Albanian delegation.

In New York, Rama will attend the opening of the General Debate of the U.N. General Assembly, where he is expected to address the gathering.

His agenda also includes official receptions, high-level events and meetings with representatives of political, business and international organisations.

Rama is also scheduled to meet representatives of the Albanian diaspora in the United States during the visit.

/gj.m/r.e/u.sh/