Fox’s first appearance – Former Albanian President Ilir Meta has sent a clear message to President Biden: “Do not forget about Albania and the Western Balkans.”
Meta, who served as Albania’s president from 2017 to 2022 and now heads the Freedom Party, worries that the United States is forgetting one of its most important European and NATO allies.
In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, the former president said the Balkans were “suffering from the current situation” and that outside powers such as Russia were trying to prevent the region from integrating into the EU and joining NATO.
“They are trying to undermine European values and foundations by creating a vacuum that they can fill,” Mehta said.
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Then-President Ilir Meta holds an American flag while speaking at a rally in Tirana on March 2, 2020. (Ghent Shklak/AFP via Getty Images)
The small Balkan nation, one of Europe’s poorest countries, has long made significant contributions to U.S. foreign policy goals.
Albania is an authoritarian Marxist nation that had a rocky relationship with the United States during the Cold War, but is now one of the most pro-American countries in Europe and has a large diaspora community in the United States. But the attention Albania has received from President Biden and Western policymakers is minimal for a country struggling to strengthen its democracy.
While the United States has prioritized aiding Ukraine against Russian aggression while also supporting Israel in its war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, many in the Balkans believe the region is not getting the attention it needs. Are concerned.
The former president’s concerns about America’s absence came in the wake of news that former Serbian intelligence chief Alexander Boulin, who has close ties to Russia and is subject to U.S. sanctions, will join Serbia’s new government. Mr. Vulin was accused of involvement in transnational organized crime, illegal drug trafficking, and abuse of public office.
President Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin (AP/Manuel Balce Seneta | Sergey Bobilev/Sputnik/Kremlin pool photo)
The announcement was seen by many in the United States and Europe as a sign that Serbia has not given up on its pro-Russian sentiments, even as it seeks to join the EU.
“We are disappointed to see two sanctioned individuals serving in positions in the new government,” a State Department spokesperson told FOX News Digital.
“The United States’ top priority in the Western Balkans is to help regional countries realize their full economic and democratic potential through Euro-Atlantic integration and regional cooperation. – Includes full cooperation with the European Union on security policy,” the spokesperson added.
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President Biden speaks with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama at the NATO Summit in Madrid on June 29, 2022. (Susan Walsh/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
Former President Mehta warned of the dangers of the “Open Balkans” initiative. The initiative is a proposal to encourage a freer flow of people and goods across the Balkans, and on the surface it appears to benefit the region. But Meta called the initiative an “anti-European integration alternative” that would strengthen hybrid regimes like Serbia’s, undermine free and fair elections, eliminate political pluralism and limit media and freedom of speech. They are concerned about being targeted.
Serbia’s new Minister of Foreign Affairs Marko Djuric objected to Meta’s framework for the Open Balkans initiative.
“Serbia is proud of its democratic initiatives, including the Open Balkans initiative. We encourage economic cooperation and connectivity in the region to promote stability and generate prosperity for all countries involved. Serbia is proud of its democratic initiatives, including the Open Balkans initiative, even though these initiatives actually have the opposite effect of promoting cooperation and mutual understanding. , I regret that this is being misconstrued as undermining democracy,” Jurik told FOX News Digital in a statement.
A giant banner depicting Secretary of State Antony Blinken went up in Albania’s capital Tirana on February 14, 2024, one day before his visit. (Armendo Nimani/AFP via Getty Images)
Djuric said Serbia aims to contribute to and maintain regional stability, security and prosperity and remains committed to the European Union integration process, a point of which many Western countries are skeptical.
“Serbia’s engagement in the Balkans is guided by the principles of democracy, respect for sovereignty and regional cooperation. While we are fully committed to the EU path, we also seek partnerships that contribute to peace and development in the region. ing.”
Agim Nesho, Albania’s former ambassador to the United States and the United Nations, told Fox News Digital that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Albanian Prime Minister Rama are “the most undemocratic, corrupt and unstable in the region in 30 years. He said that he was a “leader who brings about the future,” and that he was by no means democratic. Promote the interests of the United States and Europe.
Nesho and other regional observers say the idea that placating Serbia will bring it closer to Europe than Putin’s Russia is wishful thinking, encouraging ultranationalist Serbs and President Vucic to play with the West. He says he is giving a strong hand.
People protest against Serbian authorities and Franco-German plans for a solution to Kosovo in Belgrade, Serbia, February 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Nesho argued that the Open Balkans initiative is essentially a forum for coordinating policies with Moscow to advance the interests of both Serbia and Russia in the Balkans. The US appeasement policy towards Serbia’s destructive policies will allow Vučić to use Serbia’s presence in Bosnia and Herzegovina to create instability and keep the northern region of Kosovo in a frozen conflict, he said. highlights a clear lack of strategy.
Serbian Foreign Minister Djuric rejects such criticism, saying he recently met with the U.S. ambassador to Serbia and “stressed that strengthening cooperation with the United States is one of the Serbian government’s top foreign policy priorities,” Fox News Digital said. told. Cultural relations have undergone positive and beneficial changes in recent years, and we are committed to further strengthening this partnership for the mutual benefit of both countries. ”
Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama (left) and Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić attend the “Higher Growth, Faster Convergence” Western Balkans Summit in Tirana on February 29, 2024. (Adnan Besi/AFP via Getty Images)
He said: “Serbia’s President Vučić has been very public about all this. As he recently said, ‘We believe that we belong to Europe and we will continue on the European path. This is our “This is a strategic and permanent position and will not change.”
Russia exerts significant cultural and political influence in the Balkans through its regional allies and has been accused of inciting violence and instability. Serbia is playing the role of the Kremlin in its quest for dominance in the Balkans.
“President Putin is using the crisis in Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina to shift attention away from Ukraine and position Russia as the sole mediator of the crisis,” said Ivana Stradner, a researcher at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. He told FOX News Digital.
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“This plan is aimed at strengthening Moscow’s regional influence and giving President Putin leverage over Western countries that do not want an escalation of violence,” Stradner added.
Mehta concluded by saying that the people of the Balkans love the United States because they see it as a symbol of democracy, and in his eyes this country must never be forgotten.
“The United States must never forget how important the Balkans are to Europe and that Albania can be a long-term partner in confronting many global challenges,” Mehta said.
Fox News Digital reached out to Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama’s spokesperson for comment, but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
