Minister Tahiri gives details about FBI agreement

The FBI Director offered assistance to traing the Albanian Police and to establish the Bureau of Investigation.

Top Channel’s News Department Director, Sokol Balla, held this interview with the Minister of Interior.

Sokol Balla: Mr.Tahiri, you just signed an agreement with the FBI. What is it based on.

Minister aimir Tahiri: Allow me to give my consideration to the Prime Minister’s visit to the USA, and his meeting with President Obama. It is a key and basic moment in the relations between Albania and the USA, and also a maximal evaluation for the reforms we have undertaken so far. As for the agreement with the FBI, this is also a key moment in the relations between the Albanian Police, the Ministry of Interior, the USA, and the other institutions in general, as regards the work that will be done together with the FBI in the fight against terror, the fight against organized crime and especially in the fight against corruption. It is the first time that such an agreement is signed. It narrows down the cooperation opportunities between us and the FBI on one hand, and it puts us in a position to fight together and achieve mutual results. An FBI officer will arrive in our offices permanently, in order to help the Albanian police with the investigation. The FBI will start training and a reinforcement of the police capabilities in the fight against organized crime and corruption.

Sokol Balla: Is this as part of the current structure of the police, or a new investment for the National Bureau of Investigations tomorrow?

Saimir Tahiri: The agreement goes beyond the necessity we have now to establish the National Bureau of Investigations. The Bureau remains an absolute priority to be addressed to together with the FBI partners. We have started working with the training. We are scanning the human resources of the Police and the Bureau.

Sokol Balla: Is it true that there is a preliminary election of the police and prosecution elements who will be part of this structure?

Saimir Tahiri: We have started with the process of identifying the human resources. We will continue with the vetting process. There will be verifications of the human resources, their past, their professional capacities and their integrity. The cooperation with the FBI goes beyond the National Bureau of Investigations for reinforcing the capacities of the police in general and for creating special units that should help our fight against corruption, organized crime and terrorism.

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