The preparations of the Summit of Brdo-Brijuni Process, which will be held in Ljubljana on May 17, 2021 and its target to promote the EU integration process of the Western Balkan countries was high on the agenda of the work visit of the Slovenian President, Borut Pahor to Tirana on May 6 during which he had an exclusive interview with Albanian Daily News.

“I took this opportunity to inform the President on the Summit to be held in the frame of the Brdo-Brijuni Process in Slovenia. All the regional presidents are attending, including the Albanian President,” President Pahor said, who dwelt at length on the ambitious goal of the Summit sponsored by Slovenia, which will take the EU Presidency during the second half of this year.

In a comment on the opening of the first EU intergovernmental conference with Albania and North Macedonia during the Slovenian Presidency, Mr. Pahor was reluctant about the disagreements between North Macedonia and Bulgaria, which has blocked Skopje’s further process. Asked if Albania was to wait for that dispute to be resolved, President Pahor hinted that both countries should start the negotiating process. “Let me be on the positive side for both countries, North Macedonia and Albania,” he said.

According to Mr. Pahor, there are zero problems between Slovenia and Albania and economic cooperation is going on. “Of course, the Covid pandemic has its own price but I hope that we will get through it thanks to vaccination and other measures. Afterwards there will be enormous possibilities to boost the economic cooperation, tourist exchanges and other aspects of the cooperation between the two countries.”

Asked about the controversial ‘non paper’ alleged to have originated from Ljubljana, the Slovenian President had the following answer: “No, I do not agree on that theory. We don't know who is the author of this paper, and I do not share the views mentioned in that ‘non- paper’. I do appeal to everybody not to even think about changes of borders because it will not end peacefully.”

President Pahor made an appeal to politicians to do all they can to lead people out of this Covid crisis and then solve the economic, social and other problems. “But let us do it in a fair and honest way so that the people can trust us. This is the most important word: we should not lose the trust of the people!” said President of Slovenia Borut Pahor in the following interview:

Albanian Daily News: Mr. President first of all welcome to Albania where you have found a new political configuration after the April 25 parliamentary elections. Please could you make a wrap up of the talks you had and the main objective of this work visit to Tirana?

Slovenian President Borut Pahor:  I came to Albania to hear from your President on his views on the European perspective of the Western Balkans. We do agree there is a lack of confidence in this process of enlargement on both sides: on the side of the EU and on the side of Western Balkan countries. Due to the fact that I am preparing the conference of the leaders of the WB countries in Slovenia in two- week time I wanted to hear his reflection on how to move on so that the process would be faster and more effective, what has to be done in Europe and what has to be done in countries of the Western Balkans. And I took this opportunity to inform the President on the Conference to be held in the frame of the Brdo-Brijuni Process in Slovenia. All the regional presidents are attending, including the Albanian President. In addition, as a matter of fact, Slovenia will lead the Presidency of the European Union in the second half of this year.

So, we have to do our job, I mean myself and my government, and I hope that the same thing will be done by the colleagues and friends of the Western Balkans.

What I would like to see is a sort of fresh look on how to speed up the enlargement process.

The question is if we are ready to inspire Brussels, the European Union, with some sort of new idea how to boost this process. Among others, I wanted to ask my colleague, and I will do the same in Kosovo, Serbia next week, as I did with my friend Milanovic (Croatian President) on the idea that the EU should take more into consideration the WB.

I would like to hear their reflection on such an idea of the EU seeing the Western Balkans process as a whole. Everybody knows that the EU is negotiating through the commission with one country, another country, a third country. That is okay and I think that will not be changed. But in my view, it would be an additional value to the process of enlargement if Brussels has the whole package of the countries in its eyes. This would also help the WB countries to support each other rather than putting obstacles. I think that could be an additional value. This is what I am doing in order to check further on this idea which can be included in the document at the end of the Conference in Ljubljana.

- Do you hope that the ice will be broken regarding the opening of the first EU intergovernmental conference with Albania and North Macedonia during the Slovenian Presidency?

- We will try to do our best. I would be more than delighted if, for example, the question between Bulgaria and North Macedonia will be finally over, and so North Macedonia could get the green light. That would be quite an achievement during our presidency. 

- Does this mean that the talks of Albania with the EU are linked with the destiny of the dispute between North Macedonia and Bulgaria?

- I am not saying that Albania is not doing a good job, but there is a clear difference as far as North Macedonia is concerned.

We are aware that North Macedonia has suffered a lot during the negotiations, during the blockade of Greece. But it really has done its best during the negotiations. One thing is clear: the promise of Brussels has been that when you will do your job you will get the green light.

But now we are in a situation when a new blockade has started from Bulgaria and we would like to go through this wall that is there. Let me be on the positive side for both countries, North Macedonia and Albania.

- In the meantime, Your Excellency, it would be important to learn from you about the perspective of the course of the bilateral relations between Albania and Slovenia.

- To be frank with you we did not pay a lot of attention to the bilateral relations between the two countries, about the challenges, perspectives, opportunities during the talks held in Tirana on Thursday. The reason is because basically I came here to talk with your President on the Summit of Brdo-Brijuni Process focusing on the European perspective of the Western Balkans. I think this question deserves our attention, and I asked your President to pay really whole attention to this.

But I have to say that there are zero problems between the two countries, the economy is going on. Of course, the Covid pandemic has its own price but I hope that we will get through it thanks to vaccination and other measures.

Afterwards there will be enormous possibilities to boost the economic cooperation, tourist exchanges and other aspects of the cooperation between the two countries.

I would like to mention that we in Slovenia have a lot of people from Albania and Kosovo and they are very hard- working people, having very high working ethics. They are very loyal to our country. We like them very much and the reputation of Albanians and Kosovars is very high in Slovenia. I have a couple of friends from Ljubljana who are very experienced. In a nutshell the relations of Albanians with my people are exceptional.

-The 9th of May, on the Europe Day, will mark the launch of a long string of events in the frame of the Conference for the future of Europe. Two questions on this: Which are Slovenia’s expectations from this event when as it is reported it is being eyed a new configuration of Europe, and secondly, is the Western Balkans part of its agenda as suppositions on border changes in the region continue. And in this frame, Mr. President, a ‘non paper’ originating from Ljubljana has been the talk of the day, which, incidentally, referred also to the claim on the ‘Greater Albania’…

- Let me start from the issue of the so-called ‘non paper’. No, I do not agree on that theory. We don't know who the author of this paper is, and I do not share the views mentioned in that ‘non- paper’.

I do appeal to everybody not to even think about changes of borders because it will not end peacefully.

And now let's get back to the European Conference. I have been a member of the European Constitutional Committee of the European Parliament. So back in 2005 the European Constitution was rejected. The Lisbon Treaty has been adopted instead of it but not the same.  It was less ambitious.

As a pro European guy, I would want this Conference to be a new start of thinking of a Europe, maybe of a sort of new Constitution. But I do not know and because of Covid the circumstances cannot give opportunity for such a reality. It is important still that there will be hopefully a lively debate among the citizens of the European Union during a one-year span of time. And then I hope the French President will finalize this debate in a paper that will show us a little bit of a pragmatic approach to certain issues and also some sort of a vision for the Union. The vision is also important for the people, who have some dreams about their future.

In the meantime, I think that enlargement should be a part of this.  But I do not know how big part, how important part of this document it will finally be, but it should be a part of the debate and also it will be finally included in a document in a way that will encourage the people of the Western Balkans to do their job, and I mean reforms so that the WB people could finally come to the family.

If you look at the map of Europe, you would see that there is a region - the Western Balkans - surrounded by countries of the European Union. It is a natural thing for it to be finally there. It has been so because of history, wars and other matters but now it is time for the Western Balkans to be at home in the European Union. 

-The pandemic, Your Excellency, has been a tremendous shakeup for the entire world in many aspects: economic, healthcare, solidarity in the EU and the latter with WB, Union’s future relationship with the US, China, Russia and other parts of the world. Do you think that the ongoing crisis and the many unknowns of the future course of the recovery call for a new world order, a post-pandemic mankind?

-First of all, it is a blessing that we have a World Health Organization. I am the guy who is very pro multilateralism. I do think that it is extremely important not just for peace but also for the stability and fairness in the world that we have some sort of legal and political structure, which is of help for the people to solve peacefully and efficiently. So, I hope very much that Covid pandemic will inspire the world to come together. Not to go apart! We have many problems because of Covid-19, maybe more than we think we have at the moment. One in particular is that all the countries have been out of discipline and there is no ‘free lunch’. But I should say as a former PM during the financial crisis that it was the wise decision to invest money in people and their social stability from the moral point of view, from the economic point of view, from the political point of view. 

But now we have to take care of how to get back to the financial discipline, not to create social inequalities in the societies. This is such a difficult issue to be solved, and we have to be together and not to go apart. The gap between the rich and poor countries should be overcome. It should absolutely be overcome because if this gap gets deeper then we are doing something wrong. It will be something which once again will bring about some sort of crisis because of this gap. I do believe in social justice and it is high time to show that we are capable of regulating processes after the pandemic crisis in a fair way. And this should happen in the Western Balkans, too, because you are part of our family.

- Mr. Pahor, is this the first time that you come to Albania, and in any case what could you say about this Balkan country, I mean its history and culture, traditional links between the two people who even geographically are close? 

- Albania has not been a part of the former Yugoslavia. I have travelled to all the countries of former Yugoslavia before the war in the Western Balkans. I knew all the countries but Albania.

I had never been to Albania before the democratic changes. But afterwards I have been here and I can tell you that the country, Tirana, and the whole country are becoming nicer and nicer. You can see the development. Every time that I am here, I can see differences for the better. Specifically, Tirana, it is really becoming a modern European city.

So, it is always a pleasure to come to Albania. Before I take off for Ljubljana, I will go jogging a little bit around the city and enjoy once again new things that I have already seen that are there from the last time that I was here.

-To conclude Mr. President, which is your message to Albanian politicians?

- This is not a honeymoon for politicians, its crisis and all that stuff. But if we are committed to the people, we have to go on with our ambitions, which are their ambitions, plus this is our moral and political obligation. It would be unfair to let them down!

So let us do all that we can to lead our people out of this Covid crisis and then probably through a very difficult period of time we will solve the economic, social and other problems.

But let us do it in a fair and honest way so that the people can trust us. This is the most important word: we should not lose the trust of the people!