Mr. Minister Taulant Balla: Maybe it is easier for me in Romanian: Deșteaptă-te, române! Acum ori niciodată să dați dovezi la lume!

Sorin Bocancea: Mr. Minister, I would like to begin our dialogue with a brief exploration of your personal history. Few people are aware that Romania represents another “home” for you, having been a scholarship recipient of the Romanian state, grad­uating in Political Science from “Al. I. Cuza” University in Iași, class of 2002, and earning your doctorate in Political Science from the same uni­versity. Thus, a young individual from a former communist country came to study in another former communist country. How did young student Taulant Balla perceive Romania at that time? What similarities and dif­ferences were there between your mother country and the one that hosted you for studies in 1998?

Taulant Balla: My dear professor, thank you very much for this inter­view and this great possibility to communi­cate about one of the most beautiful parts of my life, the univer­sity studies. After finishing high school, I wanted to go and study out­side of Albania. My first choice was the US and I got ac­cepted at one uni­versity there, but my family couldn’t provide the bank guar­antee to cover the expenses and fees. Therefore, I had to look to another pos­sibility to study abroad. I saw an an­nouncement on the national TV broad­caster that the Ministry of Education is offering five full scholarships in Romania. Immediately the next day I presented my application as many oth­ers did. Some weeks later, on the same TV, my parents heard the news that I was one of the five winners. Based on the bilateral agreement between Albania and Romania, we arrived in Bucharest on the first days of Novem­ber. At the Ministry of Education in Bucharest, we were told that for the preparation year, meaning six months of intensive Romanian language learning, they had decided to send us to Iasi, more than 400 km away from Bucharest. Hon­estly, we even didn’t have any idea about Iasi. One of the girls, part of five, started even crying. Neverthe­less, on the same day late at night we departed from Gara de Nord towards Iasi by train. And arrived there very early in the morning, it was cold and even a little snowy. This was the only difficulty because the rest for the next five years was amazing. Great and welcoming people, very good profes­sors, very helpful colleagues and deli­cious Moldovan food.

1. SB.: Romania played an important role in the history of your country, a fact little known by the general public in Romania. How well-known is this fact among Albanians?
2. TB.: The historical relationship be­tween Romania and Albania is rooted in cultural ties, political solidarity, and mutual support during their respective national movements in the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century. During the Albanian National Re­newal, Romania played an important role as a cultural and political sup­porter of Al­banian independence ef­forts. Bucharest served as a hub for Albanian intellectu­als, writers, and nationalists who were active in pro­moting Albanian identity and the struggle for independence from the Ottoman Empire. The Albanian Soci­ety of Bucharest was founded in Ro­mania in 1890 to promote Albanian language and culture. Romania pro­vided publishing resources and print­ing presses for Albanian-language materi­als at a time when such publi­cations were banned in the Ottoman Empire. We, Albanians, are always thankful to Romania and its political leaders of the time who fully sup­ported the Albanian independence, which was declared in 1912. Also, the national anthem was composed by Ciprian Porumbescu, a renowned Romanian composer.

1. SB.: What similarities and differ­ences do you consider existed between the communist regimes of our coun­tries?
2. TB.: Dictatorships are always the same, but never forget that the Hoxha’s regime in Albania was more brutal. The only good thing was that the eco­nomic links and ties with Romania didn’t stop. One of the most appreci­ated cars on our streets was ARO, and also Romanians liked Al­banian ciga­rettes (DS) and cognac (Scanderbeg brandy) a lot.

1. SB.: Is there nostalgia for com­munism in Albania?

1. TB.: Albania is the most pro-Euro­pean country in Europe, with more than 90% supporting Albania’s jour­ney towards EU membership. This is a statistical answer to your question. No nostalgia for the past, too many hopes for the EU future.

1. SB.: Does Albania have a memory policy in place so that especially young people can accurately perceive what communism entailed?

1. TB.: As a long-term member of Par­liament since 2005, I appreciate a lot the role of the Authority for Infor­mation on Former State Security Doc­uments and the contribution of the Institute for the Study of Communist Crimes and Consequences. These two institutions are focused on document­ing and researching crimes committed under the communist regime. They publish books, testimonies, and re­ports, and hold public events to edu­cate citi­zens and promote historical awareness. The authority has declassi­fied thou­sands of documents: the dig­ital archive now includes around 160 thou­sand pages, with microfilm and physical records, and continues robust digitisa­tion efforts. Families of the victims can request access to their files; researchers and journalists can also access them under certain condi­tions.

1. SB.: In November 2024, I conducted an academic mission in Albania, an activity supported by your assistance, for which I thank you here as well. The “Petre Andrei” University of Iași es­tablished partnerships with two univer­sities at that time, and we had meetings with representatives of the Ministry of Education and two insti­tutions spe­cialised in the study of communism. In your office, we held a discussion dur­ing which you provided an assessment of Romania from a political scientist’s perspective. We then discussed your viewpoint with my colleagues, which we found to be ac­curate. I will not disclose the sub­stance of that discus­sion, and I kindly request you, to the extent that your political status allows, Dr. Taulant Balla, to provide a suc­cinct SWOT analysis of Romania: what are its strengths, weaknesses, opportu­nities, and threats?
2. TB.: Dear Professor Bocancea, alt­hough I left Romania in 2002, I con­tinue to have a great interest in eve­rything happening in Romania: econ­omy, politics, culture, and sports. You can’t imagine how happy I am to see Romania being one of the fastest-growing economies in the EU over the past decade, with the last year’s growth rate around 2.5–3.5%, driven by do­mestic consumption, EU-funded infra­structure, and a strong services and IT sector. Bad interferences and some fluctuations have happened due to in­flation, energy prices, and global eco­nomic conditions, but still, eco­nomic growth above the EU average. There has been another actor with not a good impact on the economy of the country: lack of sustainable and dura­ble gov­ernments. Most of my friends are in PSD, but I also have good friends in PNL and the civil society of Romania. And I always say to them: “you are changing governments very often”. The only stabilising and effec­tive mo­ment during the last 15 years happened in between 2012 and 2015 with Victor Ponta as Prime Minister, and since then Romania has had a new government every six to twelve months. Romania needs now a time of less political fight and longer stability in the governing process. Also, Ro­manian voters have to understand that the ballot has a great role; you cannot make experiments with unknown people. Such experi­ments during the last years have also contributed to this political instability.

1. SB.: After completing your studies, you entered into high-level politics in Albania. Did you have a preference regarding your country’s relations with Romania? Have you initiated projects aimed at developing the bi­lateral rela­tionship between the two countries?

1. TB.: I meet regularly with the Am­bassador of Romania in Tirana, and I follow closely the cooperation be­tween our countries. We now have very good and strong diplomatic rela­tions be­tween our two countries, but we have to understand that economic ex­changes, exports and imports are far below the real opportunities. The num­ber of Romanian tourists choos­ing Albania for holidays is increasing, and we also have direct flights from Bucharest to Tirana and soon, from Bucharest to Vlora. Romanian inves­tors in tourism need to discover Albania and invest. It is a great op­por­tunity; we are expecting more than 13 million tourists this year.

1. SB.: Albania is a country that emerged from a communist regime and is currently in the process of ac­cession to the European Union. Ro­mania has undergone a similar path. What are the most challenging issues Albania must address to successfully undertake this journey?

1. TB.: The journey is almost the same with the same challenges. Since offi­cially opening accession negotiations in October 2024, Albania has made tangible and steady progress with a total of 24 chapters (out of 33) opened in just eight months. Such rapid ad­vancement reflects both Albania’s commitment to reform and the EU’s renewed emphasis on enlargement as a strategic priority. Albania’s unwa­ver­ing commitment to EU integration will act as a catalyst to bring the country faster towards EU member­ship and further strengthen Albania’s economic growth by narrowing the gap between us and the European Union member states.

1. SB.: What is Taulant Balla’s mes­sage to Romanian politicians?

1. TB.: To the Romanian politicians? For sure they are not the same. I know some of them; we are very good friends, and I think that they are very professional, with high experience and ready to serve effectively the great and beautiful Romania. You have now a new President whom I wish not to play and repeat the same mistakes of his predecessors, to stay out of the daily politics and represent the unity and the interest of the people. The President in Romania has an im­portant role to play. You will also have another big coali­tion govern­ment, which I hope will be successful, but it is a mistake not to have one of the traditional parties in opposition. Never forget the opposition is very important.

1. SB.: What is Taulant Balla’s mes­sage to the Romanian citizens?

1. TB.: It is very difficult to find the right message on this question. Maybe it is easier for me in Romanian: Deșteaptă-te, române! Acum ori niciodată să dați dovezi la lume!

Interviu realizat de Sorin BOCANCEA