After the debates and controversies of last week, which ended with
Albania rejecting the Syrian chemical weapons for the destruction
process in our soil, one of the questions made was if the relation
between the United States and Albania would be affected.
The former United States Ambassador to NATO, Kurt Volker, and the former United States Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, Ian Brzezinski, analyzed for Voice of America the way how the process was managed and if Albania would have benefited by a positive answer.
The two former high rank officials don’t deny that the public’s hesitation was understandable, keeping in mind that those were chemical weapons after other countries had rejected them, and with the Gerdec tragedy being still fresh.
“This was a chance for Albania to contribute in resolving a very serious international problem. With international help, Albania could have given a serious contribution”, declared the former United States Ambassador, Kurt Volker.
Ian Brzezinski, Security Expert at the Atlantic Council, declared that Albania lost a chance with this rejection.
“It doesn’t happen everyday for a country like Albania to reinforce and strengthen its relation with the United States. If you want to benefit more profits from a relation, you need to contribute more”, Brzezinski commented.
However, Brzezinski thnks that Albania’s decision will not damage the bilateral relations, and that the United States value the pro-American help in general.
Volker reminds once again that Washington would have worked step by step with Albania in this difficult process.
The other former official thinks that the devil always hides in the details. His idea is that Albania should have used this process to reinforce its position in the international arena and in the highest ranks of the United States.
For Brzezinki, the United States and Albanian government could have managed this situation very well, but there was a tendency among some Albanians to exaggerate the risk and rightfully they raised questions about the process.
The question of where will the Syrian chemical weapons be destroyed is still unclear.
Top Channel
