A+ A-

Albanian leader lauds Kuwait Amir''s 10 mln euro to Tirana

By Jamal Yalli

(with photos) TIRANA, Oct 7 (KUNA) -- Albanian President Bamir Topi extolled here Friday His Highness the Kuwaiti Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah's 10 million euro grant to the development of Skanderbeg Square in Tirana.
The remark was made by Topi during a meeting with visiting Kuwaiti National Assembly (parliament) Speaker Jassem Al-Kharafi and his party.
During the meeting, the Albanian leader asked Al-Kharafi to convey his greetings to HH the Amir and an invitation to Sheikh Sabah to visit Albania at the time he sees suitable.
He also thanked HH the Amir for Kuwait's donation worth USD four million to Albania to ease out the aftershocks of a recent explosion at a weapon demilitarization facility near the capital.
He also appreciated Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development's (KFAED) contributions worth a total of USD 75 million to the financing of several development projects and programs in Albania since 1993.
He hailed Albanian-Kuwaiti relations in all political, parliamentary, economic, trade and investment areas as being "good".
Topi urged Kuwaiti businessmen and companies to have more investments in Albania, hoping that an air route would be opened between Albania and Kuwait.
He personally vowed to do his best to remove all obstacles impeding Kuwaiti investment in Albania.
For his part, the Kuwaiti house speaker conveyed the greetings of HH the Amir, HH the Crown Prince and HH the Prime Minister to the Albanian president.
He recalled to memory Albanian's support for Kuwait during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990.
"Kuwait still remembers the principled position taken by Albania for supporting Kuwait during Saddam Hussein's occupation of Kuwait in 1990," he said to Topi.
He lauded Kuwaiti-Albanian cooperative ties in trade, investment and tourist domains, pointing to a possibility for boosting bilateral cooperation.
In this context, he urged Albanian departments and agencies concerned to encourage Kuwaiti businessmen and private companies to run investment in Albania.
"Kuwait is an open country in view of economy and trade. There are openings for Albanian companies to work in the import and export of commodities and goods, tourism and transport," Al-Kharafi said.
Meanwhile, Tirana University granted Al-Kharafi its honorary doctorate thanks to his great and effective contributions to political, economic and humanitarian contribution.
This took place during a ceremony held at University of Tirana on Friday. Addressing the event, the Kuwaiti house speaker stressed the significant role played by such educational institutions as universities and research centers in achieving development.
He thanked the University of Tirana for awarding him by granting him this high scientific degree. (pickup previous) jy.mt KUNA 072035 Oct 11NNNN