Taulant Balla, Minister of the Interior, welcomed the participants of the European Regional Conference of Interpol and highlighted the increasing cooperation between the National Police and this organization, both in terms of joint operations and the number of deportations in our country, as well as our police’s contributions to this organization. He emphasized the importance of international cooperation as the most efficient strategy to combat organized crime.
“Today, more than ever, we face a lot of challenges in the security field and public order. Organized crime, drug trafficking, terrorism, and cybercrime are global threats that know no borders. These problems require a joint and coordinated response,” stated the minister.
Regarding the involvement of the State Police in international operations within Interpol, the Minister informed, “We have done our part to contribute to the international police community. The increasing number of joint operations teams (16 in 2022 and 19 in 2023–2024), arrested fugitives (82 in 2022 and 92 in 2023), and operational meetings between INTERPOL and the Albanian State Police (11 in 2022 and 26 in 2023) confirm that Albania is a committed member and a trusted partner”.
The minister said that Albania remains strongly committed to the fight against organized crime, corruption, and drugs, with an emphasis on catching perpetrators and bringing them to justice.
“The pursuit and prosecution of fugitives is a vital component of the fight against impunity. We have reformed our legal system and fortified the institutions of the rule of law, and we are just now starting to see the fruits of our efforts to combat impunity in all its forms. I would like to thank INTERPOL and all of the conference’s partners for the unprecedented number of individuals who have been deported or extradited to Albania in recent years,” stated the minister.
Tirana – The Minister of Interior, Taulant Balla, has welcomed the participants of the Interpol European Conference, noting the increased cooperation between the State Police and this organization in terms of both joint operations as well as the number of deportations in our country and the contributions of our police to this organization itself. He stressed the need for international cooperation as the most effective way to fight organized crime.
“Today, more than ever, we face numerous challenges in the field of security and public order. Organized crime, drug trafficking, terrorism, and cybercrime are global threats that know no borders and require a joint and coordinated response,” the minister said in his speech.
Regarding the participation of the State Police in international operations within INTERPOL, the Minister informed us, “We have done our part to contribute to the international police community. The increasing number of joint operations teams (16 in 2022 and 19 in 2023–2024), arrested fugitives (82 in 2022 and 92 in 2023), and operational meetings between INTERPOL and the Albanian State Police (11 in 2022 and 26 in 2023) confirm that Albania is a committed member and a trustworthy partner”.
The minister said that Albania remains strongly committed to the fight against organized crime, corruption, and narcotics, emphasizing the arrest and trial of perpetrators.
Minister Balla’s full speech at the conference:
Dear President, Mr. Ahmed Nasser Al-Raisi
Dear Secretary General, Mr. Jürgen Stock
Dear Members of the Interpol Executive Committee,
Heads of Delegations,
Dear Delegates,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Good morning, and welcome to Albania! This Albania has all sensations, tastes, exceptional hospitality, and public safety. I hope and wish that you will find some time to enjoy the unique beauty of the Mediterranean, the Alps, the blue beaches, the cultural and natural heritage, the UNESCO sites, and everything else.
This is the first time that Albania is hosting an event of the magnitude of INTERPOL, after having hosted the only EU Summit outside the EU a few months ago. Those guests who may have visited Albania 10–20–30 years ago will undoubtedly be positively surprised by the great progress and changes that Tirana and the whole country have undergone in recent years. Last year, more than 10 million tourists visited Albania. That record will shortly be exceeded in 2024 by at least 40%. There were just three flights per day, per week, at our Mother Teresa International Airport in 1991. Today, there are over 250 planes each day. Despite these high visitor numbers, there were none of the fatal crime occurrences involving visitors in the previous year.
I am grateful to the Executive Committee for making it possible to hold this important event in Tirana. It is a privilege for us. It is also a recognition and appreciation of the active contribution of the Albanian State Police to INTERPOL over the past 32 years, since the opening of the National Central Office of INTERPOL in 1992, followed by full membership in 1998. Albania is strongly committed to the INTERPOL mission. We have made our contribution to the international police community.
The increasing number of joint operational teams (16 in 2022 and 19 in 2023-2024), fugitives arrested (82 in 2022 and 92 in 2023), and operational meetings between INTERPOL and the Albanian State Police (11 in 2022 and 26 in 2023) confirm that Albania is a committed member and a reliable partner. Today, more than ever, we face numerous challenges in the field of security and public order.
Organized crime, drug trafficking, terrorism, and cybercrime are global threats that know no borders and require a common and coordinated response. All of us at this conference know that synthetic drugs are now the number one killer of Americans aged 18 to 45. The types of synthetic drugs that affect nations around the world can vary.
Certain countries may have ketamine or methamphetamine, while others may have fentanyl, tramadol, or captagon. We are responsible for the lives and health of our people, which is why we acted quickly to address the sharp rise in synthetic drug addiction, overuse, and overdose deaths. While keeping an eye out for illegal behavior, I have dedicated a lot of time and energy to combating drug use, which is regrettably growing in complexity, sophistication, diversity, and appeal to a wider range of demographics.
In recent months, the Albanian State Police have carried out a major national operation against drugs, and I am grateful for the results achieved so far. In this context, INTERPOL’s role is essential in assisting member countries in tracking and preventing these phenomena.
Albania remains strongly committed to the fight against organized crime, corruption, and drugs. We have taken important and strong steps to reform our judicial system and strengthen our rule-of-law institutions, and we are just beginning to see results against all kinds of impunity. The fight against impunity is fundamentally linked to finding fugitives and bringing them to justice.
Let me thank INTERPOL and the many partners at this conference for the record number of people who have been extradited or deported to Albania in recent years. On the other hand, Albania will always remain ready to cooperate in this direction. The results achieved so far are only the beginning of revenge and have placed the Albanian State Police at the top of the most reliable institutions, a reliable partner for national and foreign agencies, including Interpol.
Dear participants,
The police are an essential public service; they work in the public interest, promote public confidence and safety, and pride themselves on providing excellent service to the public. As Home Secretary over the past 11 months, I have visited most of our police stations and met with most of our police officers. I listen to them carefully and always ask them to show courage by taking responsibility. A police officer can show courage by being honest, open, and accountable. They should show integrity and understand people’s needs. They need to be honest and accountable for their decisions and actions.
Police forces and agencies need to uphold high standards of honesty, integrity, and ethical behavior in the course of carrying out their policing duties if they are to win the public’s trust. We are aware that more work needs to be done to advance and bolster the necessary policies to stop, identify, penalize, and eliminate corruption in law enforcement and other related agencies, as well as to prosecute dishonest police officers and other officials. The police, who are tasked with upholding the law and protecting the public, should have the public’s complete trust. I have made the decision to encourage and develop the Albanian State Police’s self-purification process as a result.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Internationally, crime is rising now. Effective coordination across all the many actors is necessary to sustain a global security architecture. The ideal international organization to offer this kind of cooperative platform is INTERPOL. INTERPOL is the reliable partner that enables law enforcement officials in all member nations to collaborate directly with one another, even in the absence of diplomatic ties.
Even though we all come from different nations and speak different languages by nature, organized crime now speaks the same language—that of “illegal financial gain at any cost”—through activities like fraud, money laundering, human trafficking, drugs, and weapons that are carried out at the expense of our good and innocent citizens.
An old Albanian proverb says, “Only united do we have power.” As such, let me thank you again for your involvement in this organization. The 196-nation International Criminal Police Organization strives to increase global safety on a daily basis.