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Protests in Albania are justifiable according to Austrian diplomat Stephan Lehne

Politiko 11 Mars 2019, 16:07

Protests in Albania are justifiable according to Austrian diplomat Stephan Lehne

Liridon Cecja

For the Austrian diplomat and scholar, Stefan Lehne, the protests taking place in some Balkan countries are justifiable as they are a commonplace. Focusing on the demonstrations organized in Albania, Montenegro, and Serbia by the opposition and the civil society, Mr. Lehne sums them up by saying that the voice of citizens needs to be heard more and more by the governments.

“Governments need to take their concerns seriously and engage in a real dialogue with civil society. If people experience that their grievances are addressed through real reforms, states will function better and the citizens will be more satisfied”, he told Politiko.al.

Regarding a possible border change between Serbia and Kosovo, he thinks it is a dangerous idea; more so if one keeps in mind that Kosova political leaders are divided on this issue.

Lehne, former director for the Balkans, Eastern Europe, and Central Asia at the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union is quoted by Politiko.al as saying:

“Border changes are inherently complicated and to some extent risky. Still, if the legitimate representatives of Kosovo and Serbia would, in a substantive negotiation, arrive at such a solution, this would certainly deserve serious consideration. Personally, I don't think this will happen soon, as the leadership of Kosovo appears very divided about this issue”.

Speaking of the prospects of Western Balkan countries joining EU, Lehne thinks that 2025 strikes him as realistic for 'the best-qualified countries of the region". Under this category, it is realistic to list Montenegro and Serbia who already have opened accession talks.

Albania is still at the gates hoping that accession talks would open this June, prospects that seem not realistic keeping in mind the current political crisis in Tirana.

To complete his assessment Lehne said: "this would require massive efforts by the countries concerned and an open and supportive attitude from the European Union”.

Stefan Lehne is a visiting scholar at Carnegie Europe in Brussels, where he researches the post–Lisbon Treaty development of the European Union’s foreign policy with a specific focus on relations between the EU and member states.

From 2009–2011, Lehne served as director general for political affairs at the Austrian Ministry for European and International Affairs. Prior to that position, from 2002–2008, he served the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union as director for the Balkans, Eastern Europe, and Central Asia. Previously, he was head of the Task Force for Western Balkans and Central Europe. He has held a number of other appointments in the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and was a researcher at the Austrian Institute for International Politics.

Lehne’s work on issues of European foreign and security policy has been widely published in a number of academic journals, including Integration, the Austrian Journal of Political Science, and Europa Archiv. In addition, he has authored a number of monographs on the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe.