Greater Albania advocate wants "Ulcinj and Preševo"
Source: Dan, Tanjug
PODGORICA
-- The so-called "Natural Albania platform" would have Montenegro's
Ulcinj declared "a free town located between Montenegro and Albania."
A view of Ulcinj (Wikimedia)
This transpires from an interview given by Albanian politician Koco Danaj, who heads a list dubbed "Natural Albania" and plans to, by the end of November, submit a petition with one million signatures to "western governments" - in a bid to gain their support for the project.
Danaj spoke for Podgorica's Dan newspaper to say that such ideas would not bring a new war to the Balkans - but would instead stabilize the region by "righting a historical wrong toward the Albanian people."
According to him, the essence of the platform is to unify Kosovo and Albania, Albania and eastern Macedonia, to create "a free region of Chameria" between Greece and Albania, and to annex the Preševo valley to Albania.
As for Ulcinj - Danaj said this was "never a Montenegrin town," and explained:
"The Berlin Congress in 1878 did not decide to give Ulcinj to Montenegro. That happened a few years later. Also, documents from the archives of the Turkish state show that Montenegro was given Ulcinj on a 100-year concession. Therefore, our demand is completely legitimate."
The London Conference in 1912, by which the independence of Albania was declared, "damaged it in its natural borders," this Albanian politician believes.
He also stated that Montenegrin politicians should help Albania in achieving the Natural Albania project.
"We must not forget that Albanian votes played a key role in reaching the 55 percent number in Montenegro's independence referendum. At the time, Albania encouraged Albanians in Montenegro to vote in the referendum. In the meantime, the Montenegrin government is not even recognizing the right of Albanians to the Tuzi municipality," Danaj was quoted as saying.
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