20 June 2008
On the second day of his visit, Prime Minister of Kosovo Hashim Thaçi began with a meeting with Tirana Commune head and socialist leader Edi Rama. The visit then continued in Durrës, Kavaja and Vlora.
In a special meeting with the head of the Commune of Tirana, Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi accepted the “Keys to Tirana” as a token of friendship from the city.
“For me this is a pleasure and an honour. I’m grateful in the name of the Government of the Republic of Kosovo and I want to mention in particular that as much as you have changed Tirana, so much will you change the whole of Albania for the better. It was a pleasure to converse with a man who is such a reformer and a model for change across our whole region. So: congratulations, good luck and best wishes,” declared Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi in accepting the “Keys to Tirana”.
After his meeting with Tirana Commune chief Edi Rama, Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi accompanied his opposite number, Sali Berisha, to Durrës. In the beachfront area of Durrës, together with the head of Durrës Commune, Vangjush Dako, he unveiled a plaque displaying the word ‘Independence’. Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha also participated in this ceremony.
Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi commented that all Albanians, wherever they were, would feel proud of the commemoration of ‘independence’ on the road leading to one of the best-known parts of the Albanian coast.
“The beautiful coast of Albania has been visited, and will be even more often visited, by the people of Kosovo, principally because there’s no need for the travel documents that would complicate the journey. At the same time, the port of Durrës is a crucial spot for the future of Albania and Kosovo, as well as for the region,” declared Prime Minister Thaçi.
“The continuation, with unprecedented intensity, of work to finish the motorway from Durrës to Morina via Kukës as soon as possible is a top priority. Prime Minister Sali Berisha, the nation will always be grateful to you for this extraordinary contribution. From our side, I promise that we will proceed with the Pristina-Vërmica-Merdare motorway, work on which will begin this year,” the Prime Minister said.
Prime Minister of Kosovo Hashim Hashim Thaçi proceeded to visit the family of Indrit Cara, war martyr of the Kosovo Liberation Army. Prime Minister Thaçi, accompanied by Prime Minister Sali Berisha and a large number of Kavaja’s citizens, first paid his respects at a statue in the centre of the city commemorating the work of Indrit Cara.
Prime Minister Thaçi said that he was visiting the Cara family to congratulate them on Kosovo independence and to offer his gratitude and respect for their son’s deeds, emphasising that the young man had left London, where he was living, in order to give his life in the trenches of Kosovo.
The family of martyr Indrit Cara thanked him for the visit, describing it as a celebration and recognition of their son’s dream of an independent Kosovo.
Concluding his visit to Albania, the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Hashim Thaçi, visited Vlora. Mr Thaçi was received by the head of the Commune, Mr Shpetim Gjika. In a special ceremony the Commune of Vlora proclaimed Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi an Honorary Citizen of Vlora.
Prime Minister Thaçi also took the opportunity to lay a wreath at the Monument to Independence.
Last modified: July 31, 2022