Ambassador John L. Withers II Interview with Shqip (September 9, 2008)

Shqip: Mr. Ambassador, you have been in Albania for over a year now.  What are your impressions?

Ambassador Withers: It has been a fantastic year.  In many ways, one of the best years of my life.  It is a real joy, even a privilege, to be here.  I have had a chance to travel around the country.  Albania is such a beautiful country.  Everywhere you go, whether it is the mountain areas, the sea, the valleys, it is just tremendous.  It is a country that is very rich in culture and in history, and I would say, also, in human wisdom.  It is really a great privilege for me to talk to people and to learn from those people.  That, really, is the best part, the people of Albania.  They are very warm, very personable, very hospitable to strangers.  It makes me feel very much at home here.  But I would also say, watching the Albanian people, day to day, how hard working they are and how they strive to make their own lives better now and to create even better opportunities for their children.  That is a remarkable story and it actually is an inspiration for me on a daily basis to see that happen.

Shqip: Looking back on the past year, what do you think were the achievements of that period?

Ambassador Withers: I was fortunate to be here when a number of very significant, even historic things, occurred.  The first and in certain ways the most remarkable was the achievement of Kosovo’s independence.  The events that led up to this wonderful development and the day itself, February 17, were really just magnificent.  We were watching the history of a people who for too long had been in the middle of conflict and whose land had been too long in the possession of others, attain freedom.  I think there is no absolutely no more wonderful gift than for people to be free in their own, free land.

The second was of course the invitation of Albania to the NATO Alliance.  This, too, was a step forward in history.  It was first move of a historic urge, a historic desire of the Albanian people to be part of Europe, to be integrated into Europe, as was their historical legacy going back to Scanderbeg times.  That again was something, when you saw it you thought a page was turned in the volume of history. This is something very important. The invitation was the first step.

There is another important step on the way.  That is the ratification of NATO membership by the legislatures of the Alliance countries.  The White House -- and recently President Bush put out a very strong statement on this -- the Department of State, and this Embassy here, have been very strong and vocal supporters for ratification to occur as soon as possible.  Tomorrow, September 10th, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold a hearing that will, among other topics, discuss the next round of NATO enlargement, which of course, includes the candidacies of Albania and Croatia. I hope at this hearing, a very strong case can be made that the Senate should move forward with ratification very rapidly.  Albania deserves this step, it has earned this step and I hope that we will have some good news on this front soon.

Then, of course, there are other Alliance members.  But I think that ratification by the United States will mean a great deal, it certainly will mean a great deal for people here in Albania and for everyone, including this Embassy that has worked so hard in that direction.

Shqip: That was the pretty part.  The other, what do you think were the problems during that period?

Ambassador Withers: The greatest, most tragic event, were of course the tragic explosions at Gërdec.  I think that we have to always start, always keep in mind, the fact that this was a human tragedy, on a large scale, that included very unfortunate loss of life, the destruction of property, people who have been hurt and wounded, the loss of their homes. We are working very hard, as you know, with the Albanian Government, to clean up this area and to make it possible for people to go back.  But, we still have concerns about the area’s safety as it is today.

I also have spoken many times and at some length about the investigation into the Gërdec tragedy.  I would only repeat what I have said several times before: that the investigation must be thorough, transparent, impartial, and non-political.

The second problem that I would raise is the problem of corruption.  There are many efforts that are being made to combat corruption but there is still too much of it and the fight must continue.  One of my predecessors, Ambassador Jeffrey, once said that corruption is “killing,” he used that word “killing,” the country.  Those are strong words, but not too strong when corruption is concerned.  We, the U.S. Government, would like to do all that we possibly can to aid in the fight against corruption.  You are no doubt aware that the Millennium Challenge authority has approved a second Threshold Program for Albania. This will provide money and expertise centered on the war against corruption.

As I have recommended in the past, I think that one of the key steps that can be made in this direction concerns the immunity of Members of Parliament.  And I would call again both on the government and on the opposition – let me underscore, the government and the opposition – to join together to take measures on this immunity issue.

Another problem that is very important for us is the problem of human trafficking.  Also the problem of narcotics trafficking, but I would focus now on the human trafficking. This was an area in which, in our Trafficking in Persons Report, Albania unfortunately took a step backwards.  We want to work hard to reverse that, to move Albania again in the upward direction over the course of this year.

The fourth category that I would mention: democratic reforms.  It is very, very important that those reforms move forward in an upward and positive direction as rapidly as possible.  The closer Albania gets to NATO membership, and particularly once Albania achieves NATO membership (I am personally confident that Albania will) the more the scrutiny on reform and on democratic reforms will increase, the higher the standards will be, and the greater the expectations will be.  It will be very important, it will be critical for Albania to meet those standards and expectations.

There are many areas at which we and the NATO partners will be looking.  We would like to see a law that strengthens the Prosecutor General, not weakening the institution of the Prosecutor General.  We would like to see measures that will increase, not hinder, media freedoms.  Radio, television, the print media must operate in complete freedom.  We would like to see an end to the politicization of various institutions such as the police and the intelligence services.  We are very willing, as we always have, to work closely with Albanian authorities, private groups, international organizations, to help Albania achieve those standards. I know that they are high, but they are I think, not just for NATO membership, but for the future of a democratic Albania.

Shqip: How would you characterize relations between the U.S. and Albania at present?

Ambassador Withers: The U.S. and Albania as nations, the American people and the Albanian people as people, are the best of friends.  Relations are excellent.  As examples of the kinds of friends that Albania has, we can start of course with President Bush.  He is a great friend of Albania.  He will be leaving office soon, as a result of the elections, but Albania will continue to have friends in high places in the American Government. Senators McCain and Biden are very knowledgeable about the Balkan region in general and Albania in particular. And, let me tell you a personal story about Senator Obama. Senator Obama was the Chairman of the Sub-Committee that oversaw my confirmation hearing. He had good questions, and tough questions, but those questions showed very clearly both his knowledge and his respect for Albania.

I have said that Albania and America are the best of friends and relations are excellent. As friends, we sometimes speak quite frankly to each other.  We offer constructive criticism to each other, but I think it should be made very clear that there is nothing personal in speaking openly and honestly to a friend.  That kind of talk is meant to assist and not criticize in a negative way.  That is what friends do.  They speak openly and directly. But the friendship still remains and it will not change.

Shqip: After the vacation, what issues will you focus on in the coming months?

Ambassador Withers: That is a very good question and is something that we here at the Embassy think quite a bit about.  One of the things that I have already mentioned, but will repeat again, is that the Gërdec investigation is very important.  Beyond that, I would urge rapid progress on the electoral code and in judicial reform.  These things need to be completed and they need to be done very well.  We are also of course awaiting the upcoming elections next year and it is very important that the preparations for those elections advance expeditiously.  The registry system, the national ID cards, these are very important elements to ensure that the election next year not face inefficiency or confusion, that there are no questions on the openness and the fairness of that process. We would hope that rapid progress is made in those areas of preparations.  We would say this is not the time for political squabbles over the electoral processes.  This is the time for the Government and the opposition, again, to show leadership, to make sure that everything is in order by next summer.

Another issue that we will be looking at very closely is this continued problem of demilitarization left over from the Hoxha years.  All of these old and unstable weapons that are still in the country we hope to work very close on the government’s demilitarization plan with our European allies to try to eliminate the dangers of those leftover weapons.

Shqip: After your visit to the U.S., you have had meetings with President Topi, PM Berisha, and yesterday with SP Chair Rama. The Embassy said you were briefing these leaders on your meetings in the U.S. What was the purpose of these meetings?

Ambassador Withers: When I was in the U.S., I held a series of meetings in the State Department and the White House. In those meetings, I was able to exchange information with people in those two institutions.  They had many questions on developments in Albania and I had many questions on events that might take place in Washington concerning Albania and the region in general, including some of the things I have mentioned, like where we are with the NATO membership ratification process.  I make a habit, when I return to try give key leaders here, both in the government and the opposition, a sense of the current thinking and the current happenings back in the U.S. By the way, I will be seeing FM Basha this afternoon.  I think that the major theme that I had in all of these discussions was the fact that relations are strong, there is interest in Washington in progress in the many areas that I have defined.  They were interested in the latest on Gërdec, in the latest on Kosovo from the Albanian perspective, in the current state of reforms. That is what the meetings were about.

Shqip: Thank you very much on behalf of our newspaper and its readers.

Ambassador Withers: Let me conclude with one simple statement. My first year in Albania has been a great one.  I am very much looking forward to next year, which I hope and expect to be an even greater year.  Thank you very much.

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