"Thirty important years but now we look to the future. The next step is to open accession negotiations between the European Union and Albania, and Italy has always supported Albania’s European path,” said Italian Ambassador to Tirana, Fabrizio Bucci, in Bari for the celebrations of the thirtieth anniversary of the landing of the ‘Vlora’ ship on August 8, 1991, in the Bari port with about 20 thousand Albanians on board.

On the occasion, the mayor of Durres, Emiriana Sako and the mayor of Tirana, Erion Veliaj, also arrived in Bari for the celebrations, alongside the consul general of the Republic of Albania in Bari, Gentiana Mburimi, and the mayor of Bari, Antonio Decaro.

It is an important moment - said Ambassador Bucci - because it marks a journey that began thirty years ago. “From a symbolic point of view, it was Albania’s first step towards Europe. And it is no coincidence that this first step was taken towards Italy, which in these thirty years has always been alongside Albania. We are special countries for one another. Italy is an irreplaceable partner for Albania. The relations between our two countries are extraordinary from all points of view, if we consider that our exchange is worth 20% of Albanian GDP,” the ambassador said in his remarks.

The fall of communism in Albania taking place in the early 1990s gave way to a major economic collapse with severe food shortages amid widespread political and social unrest in the country, which incited many Albanians to flee the country.