On June 4th, 2024, Cătălin Predoiu, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Internal Affairs, had a meeting with Mr. Igli Hasani, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Albania.
The two dignitaries mentioned the fact that between the two countries there are, at the political and technical level, sustained contacts on various subjects of common interest, which are based on historical and traditional ties.
There are deep cooperative relations, which need to be developed further on, by topics of interest at the regional and European level.
Minister Predoiu expressed interest in intensifying police cooperation, the exchange of data and information in order to combat organized crime, with an emphasis on drug trafficking, which is the main priority of the MAI.
He emphasized that the Romanian-Albanian relations in the field of internal affairs have seen a consistent development, as evidenced by, for example, the official meeting between the two ministers of the interior within the high-level segment of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), organized during the 14th – 15th of March, 2024 in Vienna and the fact that in July the meeting of the heads of the National Police from the two countries will take place in Bucharest.
Minister Predoiu recalled the sustained activities of the Romanian authorities to combat all forms of organized crime, especially drug trafficking, human trafficking and illegal migration. Regarding the fight against drug trafficking, he mentioned the initiatives at the EU level in the matter, in which Romania participates successfully. He emphasized that Romania works well with all its neighbors and states in the region and wants to develop regional and international networks to fight organized crime.
„Organized crime networks are increasingly complex, interconnected, use increasingly sophisticated tools, such as artificial intelligence. In this sense and in order to have a chance in front of these new realities that we are facing, we must pay, on one hand, special attention to cooperation between states and the exchange of information and, and on the other hand, to the preparation of national institutions to be able to successfully fight this battle. There is a need for complex institutional and legislative reforms, state-of-the-art facilities, training and rewarding of the personnel involved in these activities in a superior manner compared to what exists at the moment”, said Cătălin Predoiu.
The Romanian official conveyed Romania’s support for Albania’s European pathway:
„Romania’s national policy is meant to support Albania in the European process, we want to share our experience, because in the complex and difficult European and regional context we are „obliged” to cooperate and work together more and more closely. There are various regional and European formats in which the two countries could expand cooperation, and it is in the interests of both parties to do so; moreover, a strengthened cooperation could constitute an additional solid argument in analyzing Albania’s European pathway.”
Mr. Hasani thanked for Romania’s firm support in the negotiation process for EU accession and emphasized that Romania is an important partner in the region, a reliable friend, a role model in many fields. Albania is aware of its responsibilities and wants to accelerate the European path, to create an even safer environment for the development of tourism and business at the national level.
He emphasized that in terms of combating organized crime, Romania is a success story, Albania intending to take advantage of Romania’s experience and assistance and to further develop the very good cooperation that already exists. We need to strengthen the strong foundation for fighting organized crime, because no state can fight this scourge individually and together we are stronger. Romania and Albania are aligned in many aspects and belong to a complex geographical and geopolitical region, at the intersection of many interests and issues.
To illustrate the importance we attach to the strengthening of bilateral cooperation, Minister Predoiu emphasized that the new Strategy for Romania’s Development Assistance (2024-2027) provides for the provision of support for Albania in order to implement relevant projects for EU accession, including in the field of civil protection, which falls under the responsibility of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
