Albania’s Ambassador to Bulgaria Qirjako Kureta and Counselor and Consul Anita Shaqiri visited AUBG on March 17 and offered congratulations for the success of Albanian students and promised to build upon the strong relationship that exists between the school and the country.

AUBG President Kevin Aspegren and Kureta also discussed the prospects ahead for graduating Albanian students, and admissions counselor and recruitment coordinator Tracy Minard shared stories of AUBG’s visit to Albania last October.

The ambassador said he hoped to stay informed of the students’ initiatives and offered his desire to support them in any way possible. Kureta also said he is excited that AUBG prepares students from his country to become citizens of Europe and the world.

After meeting with the president, Kureta and Shaquiri met with Albanian students in the BAC Auditorium.

Appointed only four months ago, Kureta arrived at AUBG eager to get to know the Albanian students and create a long-term relationship with the community.

“I saw the Albanian students are very satisfied, and that they make a very good progress here,” Kureta said. “I told the students that the education at AUBG is a very good investment for the future.”

The students and guests from the Albanian embassy discussed opportunities for organizing events that will gather all the Albanians in Bulgaria, potential internships in the embassy and cultural projects such as festivals that will introduce the AUBG community to the Albanian traditions, language, food and culture.

Ina Gjika, an AUBG student from Albania and the moderator of the discussion, said the meeting “transmitted optimism” among the Albanian community.

Another Albanian student, Alboren Hasanbelliu, said he was pleased with the show of support from the embassy. “This is the first step towards some successful events in the future,” he said.

Shaquiri said the Albanian embassy is eager to support the Albanian students at AUBG and to work on easing the challenges students face when attaining Bulgarian IDs and work permits.

“We appreciated the fact that Mr. Kureta came to see us,” AUBG student Klajdi Sallaku said. “The ambassador and the council of the embassy exchanged their contact information, therefore they guaranteed collaboration for the future and this is a positive note from the ambasador’s work so far.”

Kureta also toured AUBG’s facilities. “I saw wonderful conditions on campus,” he said.

The Albanian ambassador encouraged students to take advantage of the opportunities at AUBG, actively engage with the Bulgarian culture, and try to learn the Bulgarian language.

Story by Dimana Doneva
Photography by Dimana Doneva

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