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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran | ||
| Albania rejects request to destroy Syrian weapons | ||
| 2013-11-16 | ||
Albania Friday rejected a US request to host the destruction of SyriaÂ’s chemical weapons, in a new setback for the internationally-backed disarmament plan three weeks after Norway also said no.
More than 4,000 people opposed to the destruction of the chemical arsenal on Albanian soil cheered Rama’s announcement, which was broadcast live on giant screens on Tirana’s main square. Rama said that the United States had asked Albania to “contribute to the destruction of chemical weapons”. “Our response was ‘yes, in principle’. We are ready to engage in this mission, but we do not have the capacity,” Rama said. He said the decision was “very difficult”. In a statement issued immediately after Rama’s press conference, the US embassy said Washington “appreciates that the government of Albania gave serious consideration” to the issue. “We respect the Prime Minister’s decision... We remain confident that we will complete elimination of the program within the timeline agreed upon,” the embassy said. NATO member Albania, along with France and Belgium, had been mooted as a possible host for site for the dismantling of Syria’s entire chemical arsenal, estimated at about 1,000 tonnes.
Hundreds of people spent the night outside Albania’s seat of government, while thousands of protesters gathered in towns across the country. Protesters carried placards saying “No to chemical weapons”, “We love the United States, but we prefer Albania” and “We want oxygen, not sarin gas”. Protest organisers, the non-governmental Alliance Against Waste Import, said some 35,000 people had signed a petition urging the authorities to reject the US request. Analyst Lutfi Dervishi said Albania had so far done “everything the United States wants”. “Albania is a small country that has always needed US support. In turn, Washington sees Albania as its closest strategic ally in the region,” Dervishi told AFP. But Dervishi warned that the country, although “indebted” to Washington for its support for Albania’s NATO entry in 2009, public pressure on Rama’s two-month-old government was very strong. “Albania has never said no to the United States but this time the load is too large for a small country and its capabilities,” said Dervishi. | ||
| Posted by:Steve White |
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| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2013-11-16 04:32 |
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| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2013-11-16 02:29 |
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| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2013-11-16 00:07 |