“We are fortunate to serve in Albania as a Foreign Minister with a man with abilities that speaks our language from his Greek origin”
Issues of the Greek minority in Albaniathe protection of which is a “major priority for Greece”, the Albanian community of Greece, as well as issues of security, economics, commerce, investment and interconnection, were discussed today at the meeting of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, George Gerapetritiswith the Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs of Albania, Igli Hasani.
Mr Gerapetritis stressed that we are living in a painful global geopolitical context, where wars have shaken security architecture, he said that Greece is working with Albania within the NATO and the UN and has been in favor of integrating the neighboring country into the European Union, as well as other Western Balkan countries.
He pointed out that our country, as the chairman of the Security Council, took initiatives to protect civilians in Gaza and noted that sometimes diplomacy is helpless in the face of developments. In this light, it described the development of partnerships between neighboring countries, which, he said, are of particular importance in consolidating stability. Mr Gerapetritis also stressed that the shadows that have disturbed our relationships with Albania should be eliminated, always seeking relationships of friendship and good neighborly. He referred to the strengthening of cooperation in the field of economy, trade and foreign investment, as well as education, the environment and interconnection. He described the EU’s enlargement with the Western Balkans to enlarge the security and stability of the region, “leaving behind the rearrangement and destabilization factors” as he said. He added that Greece agreed to the beginning of Albanian accession relations after the assessment of the first chapters, and referred to the protection of the Greek minority that – as he said – is a major priority for our country, and a bridge of understanding and a strong link in the relationship between the two countries, as well as the Albanians in Greece. Finally, Mr Gerapetritis said that it is a good opportunity to give a new impetus to bilateral relations, “because we are fortunate to serve in Albania as a Foreign Minister with abilities that speaks our language from his Greek origin.”
It should be noted that the mother of the Albanian Foreign Minister is of Greek descent from winter.
For his part, Mr. Hassani began his statements in Greek and thanked Mr. Gerapetritis for the hospitality, saying he was his first official visit as a foreign minister after recently taking office.
Speaking in his language, he stressed that his visit aims to give a new impetus to the strategic dialogue of the two countries and noted that the common commitment was confirmed to reinforce the bilateral relations based on the strategic interests of the two countries and the prospect of a united Europe. He said that the process of integrating Albania into the EU was also discussed and stressed that financial transactions with Greece reached € 910m in 2024 and the aim is to reach $ 1 billion in 2025. “The Greek minority and the Albanian community in Greece are bridges between the two countries” He said and appreciated that it was the right time to have a good approach to these issues and to enhance open dialogue, with the aim of a long-term good relationship between Greece-Albania.
