On July 17, Prime Minister Edi Rama convened an informal meeting in Tirana with the prime ministers of the region, along with the European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood, Olivér Várhelyi. Notably, the Prime Minister of Kosovo and the Chairperson of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia were absent from the gathering, but some media outlets in Albania overlooked this second absence.
Esmeralda Topi
On Monday, July 17th, Prime Minister Edi Rama held an informal meeting in Tirana with the European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood, Olivér Várhelyi, as well as the Prime Minister of the Republic of Montenegro, Dritan Abazović, the Prime Minister of North Macedonia, Dimitar Kovačevski, and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia, Ana Brnabić.
“Today, following an informal meeting on the New Financial and Economic Support Plan of the EU for the Western Balkans, with the European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood, Olivér Várhelyi, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Montenegro, Dritan Abazović, the Prime Minister of North Macedonia, Dimitar Kovačevski, and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia, Ana Brnabić”, wrote Rama on Facebook, sharing a photograph taken after the meeting, which precedes the Berlin Process Summit scheduled to be held in Tirana in October.”
During the informal meeting convened by Prime Minister Edi Rama following a two-day tour in the region, invitations were extended to all leaders of the Western Balkans, in addition to the representative from the European Union.
“…I see no particular concern as we extended invitations to everyone, and those who were willing to attend did so, while others who couldn’t make it didn’t.,” stated Rama during the press briefing at the Prime Minister’s office. The meeting was attended by only four out of the six leaders from the countries participating in the Berlin Process.
Specifically, on the meeting of July 17th, the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, and the Chairperson of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Borjana Kristo, did not attend, despite the media in Albania highlighting only one absence, that of Prime Minister Kurti.
“Part of the meeting were: the Prime Minister of Montenegro with a technical mandate, Dritan Abazović, the Prime Minister of North Macedonia, Dimitar Kovačevski, the Prime Minister of Serbia, Ana Brnabić, and the Chairperson of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Borjana Kristo. The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, did not participate in the meeting.”, wrote the portal shqiptarja.com in the news dedicated to the mentioned meeting.
Screenshot from the news of the portal Shqiptarja.com
The verification process confirms that, contrary to claims made by various media outlets, neither Kurti nor the Chairperson of the Council of Ministers in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Borjana Kristo, were part of the meeting.
The media in Albania highlighted Albin Kurti’s absence, but the Prime Minister himself acknowledged that three leaders from the Western Balkans participated in the meeting, providing evidence with a photograph posted right after the gathering.
“Faktoje,” on the other hand, confirmed the absence of the Chairperson of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina Borjana Kristo even through the Agency for Media and Information.
In responding to our request, Manjola Hasa, director at the Directorate for Media and Information, confirmed that:“ Mrs. Kristo was not part of the meeting.”
*This article was produced as part of the regional initiative Western Balkans Counter Disinformation Centre
Editors: Viola Keta & Aimona Vogli
