The Council of Albanian Ambassadors (CAA) closely followed the discussions held in the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Committee on Foreign Policy regarding the draft law on the Foreign Service and expresses its deep concern and regret that none of the concerns and recommendations raised over the past two years by CAA, as well as by distinguished personalities in diplomacy and international relations, were taken into consideration by representatives of the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs and by members of the parliamentary majority.
CAA also expresses regret over the lack of political will on the part of the Government and the parliamentary majority to address this draft law through consensus and in a bipartisan manner, considering that it concerns legislation of high national and state interest, and not merely partisan interest.
CAA assesses that, as was the case with the adoption of the law in 2015, the parliamentary majority continues to treat and consider the Foreign Service as its own domain, clearly opposing the establishment of a professional, sustainable diplomatic service supported by broad consensus and bipartisanship. The diplomatic corps must serve the state and national interests of the Republic of Albania, not the parties in power.
Meanwhile, the Council of Albanian Ambassadors, a highly professional organization with distinguished contributions in the field of diplomacy and international relations, whose members include former Ministers of Foreign Affairs, former Ambassadors, former Secretaries-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and former Political Directors, was denied the opportunity to be heard in a special hearing session before the Parliamentary Committee on European Affairs and Foreign Policy, as formally requested by CAA, in order to defend an investment built over the years for a professional, career-based diplomatic service, as called for since the late 1990s by the European Union and the international community.
In this context, we call on the Government and the parliamentary majority to withdraw the draft law and reopen the review process in an inclusive and bipartisan manner, taking seriously into consideration the suggestions and recommendations of those who have contributed and continue to contribute significantly to Albania’s foreign policy and to the protection of the country’s state and national interests. Such an approach would help consolidate a professional, depoliticized diplomatic corps enjoying broad institutional and societal support.
CAA considers that, if adopted in its current form, the draft law will further damage the diplomatic career system, excessively politicize it, and foster a sense of permanent political insecurity among career diplomats. Such a diplomatic service risks being perceived as biased and sets a negative precedent for any future political rotation, seriously undermining the continuity and credibility of Albanian diplomacy
In this context, the Council of Albanian Ambassadors calls on the President of the Republic not to promulgate this law in its adopted form and to exercise his constitutional authority to return it to Parliament for reconsideration.
At the same time, the Council of Albanian Ambassadors informs the public that it will pursue all institutional and legal avenues, including referring this matter to the Constitutional Court, in defense of constitutional principles, the rule of law, and a professional, depoliticized Foreign Service serving Albania’s long-term national interests.
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