Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti has expressed his condolences on the passing of former Albanian Prime Minister Fatos Nano, describing him as a central figure in Albanian political history.
Kurti recalled the two meetings he had with Nano, the first in early 2002, a few months after his release from prison in Serbia, and the second during Nano's term as prime minister, where Adem Demaçi and Arben Xhaferi were also present.
"I remember his passionate conversations about politics with Baci Adem, the symbol of our resistance, and with Arba Xhaferi, such an original political leader," Kurti wrote.
He emphasized that Nano's name will remain prominent in the modern history of the Albanian state and relations between Albania and Kosovo, including his role during the years of the Kosovo Liberation Army war.
Albin Kurti's note about Fatos Nano:
When I received the news of Fatos Nano's death, memories of the two meetings I had with him came to mind. The first time was in early 2002, a few months after I had been released from prison in Serbia, where I had been held as a prisoner of war along with over 2,000 other Albanians. This experience of mine naturally became the topic of my conversation with Nano at that introductory meeting.
I met Fatos Nano for the second time when he was elected Prime Minister of Albania, on which occasion he received me together with Adem Demaçi and Arba Xhaferi. Since then, I have vividly remembered his passionate conversations about politics with Baci Adem, the symbol of our resistance, and with Arba Xhaferi, such an original political leader.
In the political history of Albania during the transition period from a monist system and communist regime to a liberal and pluralist democratic one, the name of politician Fatos Nano was a central figure. He served three times as Prime Minister of Albania: from February 22 to June 4, 1991, when Albania was in the transition from communism to democracy; then from July 25, 1997 to September 27, 1998, when Albania was engulfed in unrest and Kosovo in war; for the third and longest time, Nano served as Prime Minister of Albania for three years, between September 29, 2002 and September 1, 2005, when Albania was facing the challenges of emerging from the consequences of the long communist regime and unrest.
In his political biography, Fatos Nano has an important chapter for his role in the Kosovo Liberation Army war, during the first year of the war from the public appearance of the KLA to the offensive of the summer of 1998, when the Albanian terrain was the free arena of the KLA organization. The modern history of the Albanian state and the political history of Albania and Kosovo will have his name densely among the names of Albanian politicians of the '90s and the beginning of the 21st century.
Condolences to the Nano family, Fatos Nano's collaborators and fellow party members, as well as his friends and relatives.
May he be remembered among the prime ministers of Albania for his historic role!