The company’s president: I give Gërxhalliu the salt, gasoline, bricks and debts page 2

The iron gate separating Tirana from Washington has shifted slightly. A Vietnam War veteran will be the new United States military attaché in Tirana. The announcement issued by official sources makes no secret of their pleasure at the arrival of Frank Knabe as the military representative of the great Western country, and interprets it as an indication of good relations between the two countries. In a statement to the press, the Defence Ministry spokesperson said that Knabe’s arrival in Tirana was a sure sign that ties between the two countries were growing stronger. The arrival of a representative at a foreign embassy after the departure of his predecessor is routine in the life of diplomatic missions. The Knabe case does not appear to be an exception to the norm of ordinary exchanges and protocol transfers that foreign ministries carry out from time to time with their personnel. This could be one way of interpreting the arrival of a new head of the US military service in Tirana. Secondly, US policy in Albania and the region has always followed its own course of action. This is normal for a major power with multifaceted interests in all four corners of the world, which pursues a flexible policy with its partners. US military relations, for example, have not always coincided with or been shaped by the policy of the moment. American military strategy, framed within joint initiatives with European states, follows its own logic, and in the Balkans this logic has always pushed towards cooperation and engagement. Seen in this light, Mr Knabe’s arrival does not seem to provide grounds for political speculation of any kind. Thirdly, the American position towards Albania has shown no sign of softening in recent months. The relative silence following the local elections cannot be considered a change of course, as long as the Clinton administration continues to make its statements concerning political freedoms in our country—undoubtedly the strongest such statements made by Western governments. According to Washington, Albania must adopt the conditions in cooperation with the opposition’s consensus and then hold general elections to restore Albanians’ shaken confidence in the institutions, the free vote and the values of democracy. This formula remains unchanged even after the arrival of the new American attaché in Tirana, who will surely give fresh impetus to bilateral relations in the military field. There is no reason to doubt that this will happen. S. MINXHOZI

page 5 From the violent protests in Belgrade Photo: Reuter