The President of the American Chamber of Commerce, Enio Jaço, discussed at the Tirana Economic Forum with the Senior Fellow of the Atlantic Council, Damir Marusic, on “US-Albania Relations in the Biden Administration”.

He said that after the two strategic projects of Skavica and the Vlora TEC, US investments could become long-term and dominant if the right reforms are addressed.

He stated that defense, security issues, democracy and business continue to be the three main priorities in the focus of the White House regarding policies in the Western Balkan countries, including Albania.

Specifically focusing on the Biden administration’s priority on business issues with a focus on Albania, Jaço said: “This is a new priority and aims for a stronger US-Albania trade relationship, more US investment, more trade, etc. This is optimistic because it has never before been raised to such a high level of policy. And it has had strong results in a short period of time. Last year, Albania and the US signed the most important Economic Agreement since the 90s, which includes the construction of a large hydropower project. And in recent days we have also finalized an agreement with ExxonMobile for the construction of a power plant in Vlora for LNG (liquefied natural gas)”.

Describing this development as one of the most important in the economic relations between the two countries, Jaço emphasized the Business Climate.

“The business climate in Albania needs improvement and the progress made with these investments will be short-lived if Albania does not address corruption. This issue is linked to democracy and the rule of law, which are fundamental parts of the priorities of American policy in Albania. Progress in this direction will determine the long-term success of the business agenda and the priorities themselves.”

Damir Marusic: What are, in your opinion, Albania’s main priorities in relation to the Biden Administration?

Enio Jaço: The main goal for US administrations has been to advance Albania’s integration process into the European Union. Despite obstacles and delays, the expectations are that the EU will begin opening negotiations this year.

But, beyond EU membership, the US has had three main priorities in Albania, which I think are likely to be ongoing. They are: defense, democracy, and business. I am not a defense expert and I will let others speak on that, but I think the relationship is going very well.

Democracy and business are more interesting in my opinion. The judicial reform has been a big concern in terms of democracy. It is something very important in Albania and I think there has been a substantial structural reform, but perhaps not enough for an ordinary person to see visible progress. The US and the EU are both fully invested in this reform and in the coming years I am convinced that we will see progress.

But, in terms of democracy, improved conditions for holding elections and the fight against crime and corruption have been fundamental issues. These are all key priorities and there is still a lot of work to be done.

Damir Marusic: One of the issues that concerns Washington is organized crime and corruption. Ambassador Yuri Kim this week urged political parties to address this problem. Do you think there will be progress in this direction?
It is a very important issue. We tend to be optimistic. We have discussed this extensively in the American Chamber. People in Albania are tired and are looking for concrete results. In our communications with the government, we have reached the point of agreeing on these problems and we are now discussing solutions together.

Corruption in Albania is worrying, it has become almost normal, a bit like a way of life, and we expect concrete actions in this regard. One of the reasons why we are positive is the fact that Prime Minister Rama has sought US support in this regard in recent years and there has been a lot of progress in this regard. USAID has already established the USATA, the Transparency Academy. This is a good start, very important, but it will not be easy, I think there will also be resistance.

Damir Marusic: Prime Minister Rama has been a key player in advancing the so-called Mini-Schengen proposal for the region — an initiative that is not intended to replace eventual integration with the wider geopolitical West, but as a worthy initiative to achieve meaningful progress for people as the larger process unfolds.
Do you think we will see progress along these lines?
Enio Jaço: The Mini-Schengen concept is a very good idea. The proposal was enthusiastically embraced by most Western Balkan countries at the time, except for Kosovo. But you don’t hear much about it these days, I think for two reasons: First, there is an aspect

political: Kosovo was not as enthusiastic as the rest. And I think it would be good if all the countries are involved. And, secondly, Mini-Schengen was relatively ambitious and required a lot of hard technical work in terms of drafting common trade agreements and customs policies that bring real benefits to the people among all the signatories. That has not actually happened.

So we may not see much progress on this issue unless there is a strong regional will for all the countries in the region to agree or unless the US or Europe, or both, are strongly involved in making it happen.

Damir Marusic: Beyond opening up regional trade, what are the other more easily accessible options for the region?
I think there are three immediate options here. First, there is the ‘Western Balkans Economic and Investment Plan’. This is a €9 billion investment plan from the European Commission’s initiative calling for an investment plan for green energy, digital transition and infrastructure, announced last October. This is a great opportunity for everyone. But the countries that will make the most progress on the reforms recommended by the EU will benefit the most from the plan. So this is a real opportunity and I think it is easy to understand. But it will require commitment to reforms to see faster progress towards the EU.

Green energy is something that will be an important issue for the Biden Administration as well. And we see some real opportunities for digitalization and infrastructure for Albania.

Secondly, the two energy projects in Albania, the hydropower plant with Bechtel and the thermal power plant with ExxonMobile are great opportunities to ensure energy independence and to turn Albania into a regional energy production hub.

But beyond that I think there is another concept, similar to Mini-Schengen, the idea of ​​Regional Investments. The individual countries of the Western Balkans are too small to attract large-scale foreign investment. Of course, Albania, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Bosnia and even Serbia are not that big. But if there is a certain level of agreement among the six countries – and some standards set among all the countries – the region could be more attractive to medium- and large-scale foreign investors. Investors can set up their offices in one of the countries in the region, but they can cover the entire region. There could be American investors among them. If the region commits to reforms and goes through the EU accession process, then the countries of the region will definitely benefit from higher economic growth rates.