US concerns about Albania

The report that holds the signature of the National Intelligence, James R. Clapper, was submitted at the Special Committee of Intelligence at the US Senate.

The report has information about the Balkan region, and the concerns coming from Albania are related with the presence of corruption in institutions, the political influence and the risks of the future Parliamentary elections.

“The government institutions in Albania suffer from corruption and excessive political influence. The next elections are held in June and there is the risk of returning political conflicts, as after the elections 2009, when the opposition contested the results and boycotted the Parliament for almost two years”, the report says.

The report assesses that the ethnic and political divisions in Balkan remain the main risk for the stability of the region.

“Many delicate states in the region suffer from economic stagnation, high unemployment, corruption and the low presence of law. Although the situation in Northern Kosovo has improved since autumn 2011, the diplomatic commitment of the West is necessary to implement the agreements reached in the meetings with the EU”, the report says.

The report also underlines that the threats in Northern Kosovo could increase in 2013.

As for Macedonia, the report says that there is the risk of inter-ethnic clashes between Macedonians and Albanians.

“In Macedonia we do not expect the return of a civil war, as 10 years ago. However, the clashes between Albanians and Macedonians could get worse during the year”, the report adds.

Top Channel