Albania-North Macedonia vow to increase economic cooperation
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- Zaev said “there is room to deepen cooperation between the two countries, while citizens expect to advance their economy and have a better standard of living.”
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March 13 - North Macedonia Prime Minister Zoran Zaev visited Albania and his counterpart Edi Rama on Wednesday, with whom he discussed the possibilities of a closer economic cooperation between the two countries.
Rama said that "relations between the two countries have never been better than today, and that countries share an understanding of a common economic zone with maximum border facilities, similar to Kosovo and Montenegro."
Zaev said “there is room to deepen cooperation between the two countries, while citizens expect to advance their economy and have a better standard of living.”
According to him, the economy of Northern Macedonia grew last year, thanks to foreign investments and regional cooperation, bilateral trade exchanges with Albania - also signaling the EU that Skopje and Tirana are getting ready for membership.
Bilateral trade exchanges have been on the rise.
Meanwhile, some infrastructure investments on both sides of the border will help to improve circulation and cooperation between the countries. Albania and North Macedonia also agreed to facilitate the transit of people and goods on both sides of the border.
Fifteen months ago, a joint meeting of the two governments was organized, and by the middle of this year a second meeting is being prepared between them.
Albania was among the first to ratify North Macedonia’s NATO membership, a process expected to be completed by the end of the year.
The two countries are also on a common path towards the EU, and both leaders believe the EU will open accession negotiations in June, with Zaev saying he believed the union would be positive in its answer.