Albania hosts regional European summit

A senior Turkish economic figure was in Albania’s capital on Tuesday as Tirana handed its presidency of the South-East European Cooperation Process to Bulgaria.

A SEECP summit in Tirana heard from Albanian President Bujar Nishani who said that the country, during its presidency, fought organized crime, championed regional peace and had made efforts for European Union membership for non-EU countries.

Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan was joined by Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev, Moldovan President Nicolae Timofti and Romanian Prime Minister Victor-Viorel Ponta.

The SEECP was established in 1996 in Bulgaria to establish peace and stability in the Balkans.

Turkey has been a SEECP member since the founding and has held the presidency from 1998 to 1999 and 2009-2010.