Region's presidents gather in Albania

25/06/2009

TIRANA, Albania -- Further co-operation aimed at eventual EU integration was the topic of a meeting Wednesday (June 24th) in Vlora among Albanian President Bamir Topi and his regional counterparts: Montenegro's Filip Vujanovic, Kosovo's Fatmir Sejdiu and Macedonia's Gjorge Ivanov. Topi the host, said "co-operation among countries of the Western Balkans should be mutual in the economy, diplomacy and politics, which benefits the long-term security and development of the region." On the sidelines of the forum, the newly-elected Ivanov met for the first time with Kosovo's Sejdiu, who invited him to visit Pristina. Ties between the two had been strained recently. (Top Channel, VoA, BBC, Balkan Web - 24/06/09)