Albanian top diplomat: Albania stands firm next to Kosovo in the face of any security breach

At the joint news conference for the media after meeting with Kosovo Foreign Affairs and Diaspore Minister Glauk Konjufca, Hoxha said Albania will continue to stand by Kosovo in all its state- and integration processes.

“Who touches Kosovo, affects Albania”, Hoxha said.

He criticised attitudes and initiatives that continue to contest Kosovo's citizenship, even referring to recent developments in the region.

“Anyone who has not yet realized that the Republic of Kosovo is an irreversible political, judicial and international reality lives at a different time and dreams with open eyes”, Hoxha has said, naming these positions as “somnambul political”.

The Albanian minister stressed that Albania remains committed to protecting Kosovo's security and stability, citing attacks on Banjsk and on the Iber-Lepenc channel, for which it sought responsibility and full accountability.

Hoxha said Kosovo has been part of his diplomatic commitment over the years, while his first official visit to Pristina as minister was considered of particular importance.

I feel the thrill of being in Pristina on my first official visit as Minister of Foreign Affairs for Europe”, he said.

Speaking to reports between the two countries, Hoxha stressed that Kosovo remains Albania's absolute foreign policy priority and that developments in Kosovo also directly affect Albania.

In Tirana we will never say enough that Kosovo is the absolute priority of our foreign policy”, he said.

He called for deepening co-operation between the two states, requiring more institutional and diplomatic co-ordination, as well as fewer bureaucratic barriers in implementing common goals.

Hoxha also called for advancing Kosovo's international integration, considering it in the interest of all citizens of the country, indiscriminately the community.

In this context, he singled out the importance of Kosovo membership in the Council of Europe and U NESTO, as well as continued support for the country's Euro-Atlantic path, praising the role of these organisations in protecting human rights and cultural heritage.