The Deputy Assistant Secretary at the US Department of State for Europe and Euro-Asia, Gabriel Escobar, said that violence shouldn\u2019t be used to take control of a political party, while adding that he condemns the violence that erupted during this weekend\u2019s protest at the Democratic Party headquarters.<\/p>\n
On January 8, the former president of Albania, Sali Berisha, staged a protest at DP\u2019s headquarters, in an attempt to take back DP and force the current chair, Lulzim Basha, to step down.<\/p>\n
Berisha and several other members of the Democratic Party have been either permanently expelled or suspended from the party.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the United States has recently declared Berisha and his close family members persona non grata, thus banning them from entering US soil.<\/p>\n
In an interview for VOA, Escobar, who is simultaneously the United States\u2019 Special Envoy for the Western Balkans, warned of more sanctions against this region that will be announced in the near future.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have said that I don\u2019t like to speak about sanctions in general, for many reasons, but especially due to the fact that this isn\u2019t the way that the US likes to get involved in the region, especially in Albania,\u201d \u2013 said Escobar.<\/p>\n
He also noted that the sights that took place on January 8, where Berisha\u2019s supporters tried to break into DP\u2019s headquarters by force, won\u2019t be repeated.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, when asked about the possibility of achieving an agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, Escobar said that he hopes that there will be progress in terms of the EU-mediated dialogue between both countries.<\/p>\n
In addition, he said that during the year, the US will be intensively committed to engaging with the parties involved in the process.<\/p>\n
The dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia began back in 2011. This process is aimed at achieving an agreement to normalize the rapport between both countries.<\/p>\n
Kosovo\u2019s PM, Albin Kurti, has declared that it is very possible that an agreement will be reached during his term as prime minister and during Joe Biden\u2019s term as US president.<\/p>\n
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