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At a time when his government is mired in corruption, Rama 'crys out' to the EU
Prime Minister Edi Rama has once again become the protagonist in foreign media. Rama has attempted to lecture the European Union, which he says has been plunged into darkness.
At a time when his government is mired in corruption, Rama 'crys out' at the EU, which, according to him, has lost its balance.
But even though he 'blackened' the Union, he still repeated the desperate call to join.
" Get us into Europe and I'm ready to sign an agreement that clearly states that we don't want to have the power of veto ," Rama said in the interview.
He openly admitted that in its desire to join the EU, Albania has been forced to "swallow a lot of frogs."
Among other things, Rama did not miss the opportunity to praise US President Donald Trump during the interview.
He says Trump is not Europe's problem and even sees his election as a wake-up call.
"A necessary blow to free Europe from the inertia that holds it hostage. For too long, the EU has been disconnected from reality and hampered by its own bureaucracy, " the Albanian prime minister said.
Full article "The Observer"
In his office filled with artwork, leaning back in a dark leather armchair, Edi Rama, the prime minister of Albania, speaks in an interview with "The Observer" about the "darkness" that, according to him, has descended on Europe.
It cannot be said that Rama, who won his fourth term in May, is having a bad year, while Albania is receiving praise for its progress in European Union membership talks.
Despite this, he is troubled by the "overall lack of positive energy" and by the feeling that Europe, despite "great leaders", is sliding deeper and deeper into a state of pessimism.
" I don't see the light. There is a darkness in Europe and I don't see a way out. There are people trying to do the right thing, but I don't see a strategy. Thinking that the problem is somewhere else doesn't help. It's in Europe. It's us ," he says.
A painter before entering politics, Rama conveys the spirit of a professor who, although controversial and alternative, has managed, through determination, talent, and charisma, to bring comprehensive reforms to the state that was hermetically sealed under communism.
In Brussels, the 61-year-old socialist is seen as one of the most pragmatic leaders to emerge from the former East. In Tirana, EU ambassadors praise Rama’s ability to “think outside the box,” even as endemic corruption continues to plague the country and, more recently, the highest levels of his own government. This appreciation explains why Rama’s views are taken seriously.
"Europe itself is out of balance: its bureaucracy weighs more than politics and internal strife seems bigger than the common horizon," says Rama.
The debate over migration has been particularly challenging for an Anglophile politician, forced once again to denounce the “ethnic stereotyping” of Albanians expressed by a British Home Secretary.
Rama does not hide how "disturbing" it is that this time the accusations of abuse of asylum laws by Albanians come not from a Conservative minister, but from a Labor government led by a man with whom he says he has a "very good" relationship.
“If you single out a community, you can expect members of that community to get hurt, attacked, injured, beaten. We know from history that this is what happens, ” he says, his fingers moving over a string of beads.
France's Socialist Party, he adds, has committed "spectacular suicide" by attempting to imitate the far-right's rhetoric on immigration.
According to him, this is a cautionary lesson for leaders to stay true to their beliefs and values.
" When you enter a race with the far right, you lose, because when it comes to choosing who is tougher on issues like migration, the instinct is to choose the original, not the copy. Do you think you can dance with the devil? The devil wins the moment he steps on the dance floor, " he says.
The rise of far-right populism, patriotic nationalism, division and the acceleration of Europe's militarization are, according to Rama, powerful forces that deepen this darkness.
But Rama has never been of the opinion that US President Donald Trump is Europe's problem or that the new American national security strategy is particularly surprising.
On the contrary, he sees Trump's election as a wake-up call; a necessary blow to pull Europe out of the inertia that holds it hostage. For too long, Rama says, the EU has been disconnected from reality and hampered by its own bureaucracy.
"The wisdom of the world has moved forward without us, and suddenly we are realizing that we have been left behind. In this time of great challenges, we lack political strength; we remain on the surface, when depth is what the moment requires ," Rama said.
The bloc's heavy bureaucracy, according to Rama, is a key obstacle.
“Vetë Evropa është jashtë ekuilibri: burokracia e saj peshon më shumë se politika dhe grindjet e brendshme duken më të mëdha se horizonti i përbashkët. Bëhet fjalë për mendim strategjik dhe politika të drejta dhe për atë se ku duam të jetë Evropa pas 10 apo më shumë vitesh. Evropa duhet të ndryshojë dhe duhet të ndryshojë shpejt. Të gjithë e thonë, të gjithë janë të vetëdijshëm për këtë, dhe megjithatë të tjerët po ecin me një shpejtësi shumë më të madhe.”-shton më tej ai.
Që nga fillimi i pushtimit të plotë rus të Ukrainës, Shqipëria, anëtare e NATO-s që nga viti 2009, e ka mbështetur fuqishëm aleancën euroatlantike. Tregues i entuziazmit të saj për atë që Rama e quan “i vetmi pozicion moralisht i qëndrueshëm” është një targë makine e vendosur dukshëm jashtë zyrës së tij, me fjalën “Ukraine” dhe e zbukuruar me zemra të kuqe.
“Na fusni në Evropë dhe jam gati të nënshkruaj një marrëveshje ku të thuhet qartë se nuk duam të kemi fuqinë e vetos”, tha Rama.
Në ish-shtetin stalinist nuk ka nostalgji për Rusinë e sotme, edhe pse intelektualët shqiptarë shprehin një dashuri për gjigantët e letërsisë ruse që lexoheshin dhe mësoheshin deri sa diktatori Enver Hoxha i preu lidhjet me Moskën.
“Çdo njeri që interesohet për botën mund të dojë shumë gjëra nga Rusia. Por jo politikën ruse. Në Shqipëri sigurisht që nuk na merr malli për faktin që nuk kemi pasur asnjë punë me Moskën që nga viti 1960.”-shton Rama
Ai gjithashtu kritik ndaj mënyrës se si Evropa ka trajtuar negociatat e paqes, duke i dhënë meritë Trumpit për çeljen e komunikimit me Rusinë dhe për sjelljen e “diçkaje të re dhe të rëndësishme në lojë”.
“Ai solli komunikimin dhe diplomacinë në mes të një lufte që mund të ketë qenë e para ndonjëherë pa komunikim. Po, e bëri në mënyrë përçarëse sepse kështu vepron, por edhe këtu lind pyetja për ne: çfarë po bëjmë ne? Si ka mundësi që Evropa të mos ketë pasur kurrë një plan paqeje, apo komunikim të drejtpërdrejtë me Rusinë? A është kjo normale për atë që jemi si evropianë? Unë nuk mendoj kështu”, shprehet Rama.
Në këtë boshllëk, thotë ai, Putini ka arritur të ketë sukses, “si shahisti brutal që është”, duke ushqyer një psikologji frike për sulme të mëtejshme, kur në realitet trupat ruse kishin kaluar vite duke u përpjekur të merrnin rajonin e Donbasit në Ukrainë.
Rama e pranon hapur se, në dëshirën për t’u anëtarësuar në BE, Shqipëria është detyruar “të gëlltisë shumë bretkosa”.
Por anëtarësimi është gjithashtu ekzistencial. Pas më shumë se 500 vitesh si një cep periferik i Perandorisë Osmane dhe gati pesë dekadash nën një regjim komunist më brutal se çdo tjetër, asnjë synim nuk tingëllon më i suksesshëm se ky.
Gjeografia, thonë ata që janë ende mjaftueshëm të rritur për ta kujtuar, i bënte evropianë, por mizoria dhe paranoja e Hoxhës bënë që shqiptarët të mos ndiheshin kurrë pjesë e kontinentit.
Decades of turbulent transition after the fall of the regime have only strengthened the stance towards the EU. Of all the candidates waiting at Brussels' door, no country has higher support for membership than Albania.
This enthusiasm partly explains why Rama has set 2030 as the target for Albania's EU membership, with the aim of concluding negotiations by the end of 2027; an ambition that his opponents call "completely unrealistic", but the 6-foot-tall leader seems determined to do whatever it takes.
“Get us into Europe and I am ready to sign an agreement where it is clearly stated that we do not want to have the power of veto. We will never use our vote against the majority. We do not want our own commissioner either. We can make an agreement with Italy and the Italian commissioner will be our commissioner. We are ready to do this as a guarantee against any fear that some crazy guy from the Balkans will enter the club with the power of veto and start imposing things ” – concludes Rama./ Taken from “TheObserver”
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