Стр. 22 - V

Электронное приложение к журналу «Международная жизнь»
Author : N. Platoshkin
Head of the Department of International Relations and Diplomacy, Moscow University for the Humanities,
Doctor of Science (History)
ALBANIA played a significant role in the Balkans hun-
dreds of years ago, and is increasingly influential in
Balkan politics today.
Russia cannot ignore the fact that Albanian-Slav rela-
tions in the Balkans are unlikely to even amount to a
"cold peace" stable enough to guarantee any acceptable
level of security.
One may suggest the following ways of "resetting" re-
lations between Russia and Albania:
1. The president of Russia should pay a proper official
visit to Albania. 2. Edi Rama might also pay an official visit to Moscow and might have some
of his interesting paintings exhibited in the Russian capital. 3. Since agriculture and cultural af-
fairs are the main potential fields of cooperation between the two countries, the Russian co-
chair could be either the agriculture or the culture minister. 4. To encourage more Russians to
go to Albania, the two countries should organize direct flights between Moscow and Tirana. If
demand goes up, charter flights might be added on. 5. In general, the two countries need an
agreement on the complete abolition of visas. 6. Russia could help expand and modernize the
railroad networks of Albania and its neighbors in order to facilitate cargo transportation to the
Albanian port of Durres from Macedonia, Serbia, and inland Albania. Russia could use Durres,
which also needs modernizing, for unbrokered imports of excellent and inexpensive Balkan
fruit, vegetables, and meat and milk products. 7. There are oil and gas fields in Albania, and
Russia could help develop them and help build a pipeline network to connect Albania to its Slav
neighbors. 8. Russia could help set up a center for Albanian-Slav cooperation, a facility that
could be located, for example, in Ohrid, Macedonia, which is an ancient Slav cultural and spiritual
center. 9. The film industries of Russia and Albania could well make another joint movie, for
instance one on our peoples' brotherhood in arms during World War II. 10. It would be a good
project for Russia to publish a complete collection of works by Albanian literary classic Ismail
Kadare. This great writer also deserves a Russian state decoration for his unparalleled humanism
and his contribution to international peace.
Of course, these suggestions can't purport to make up an exhaustive program. But Albania is
an important factor of stability in the Balkans and a country that has close historical ties to Rus-
sia, and Moscow should move it a good way up its foreign policy agenda, though not letting its
policy toward Albania overshadow our relations with our Slav brothers, who will remain such.
Edi Rama: Does He Represent a New Albanian Reality?