On April 26-28, 2023, the President of the Republic of Albania, Sh.T.Z. Bajram Begaj and the First Lady Armanda Begaj, made a state visit to Croatia, at the invitation of the President of the Republic of Croatia, Sh.T.Z. Zoran Milanovic.
In the delegation headed by President Begaj, the Deputy Speaker of the Assembly, Mr. Agron Gjekmarkaj and the Chairperson of the Albania-Croatia Parliamentary Friendship Group, Mrs. Klodiana Spahiu. During this visit, President Begaj was accompanied by Ambassador Poda.
In addition to the meeting with his Croatian counterpart, President Milanovic, President Begaj also held a meeting with the Speaker of the Parliament of the Republic of Croatia, Mr. Gordan Jandrokovic, as well as had a working lunch with the Prime Minister of Croatia, Mr. Andrej Plenkovic
After the face-to-face meeting between President Begaj and President Milanovic, it was followed by the meeting between the two official delegations, at the end of which the two presidents had a press conference. President Begaj underlined the importance of further strengthening the strategic partnership between the two countries, stressing the need to expand bilateral relations, with particular emphasis on economic-commercial cooperation, the advancement of Albania’s European integration agenda, where he appreciated Croatia’s continuous support , and stopped at regional developments.
The representative of the Albanian minority in the Parliament of Croatia, Ermina Lekaj Prljaskaj, also participated in the meeting with Speaker Jandrokovic. President Begaj appreciated the role of the two parliaments in strengthening bilateral relations, underlining the contribution of the parliamentary dimension to the European integration of the country.
At the working lunch with Prime Minister Plenkovic, President Begaj praised Croatia’s recent achievements within the EU, namely the entry into the Schengen area and the Eurozone, where he underlined that Croatia remains the best example for Albania’s European journey. In this context, President Begaj expressed his gratitude for the continuous support of Croatia in the European journey.
Both interlocutors shared the opinion on the need to deepen bilateral economic cooperation in areas of common interest.
As part of this visit, the First Lady Armanda Begaj was accompanied by the First Lady of Croatia, Sanja Musić Milanovic, in visiting the “Oton Iveković-retrospective” exhibition.