“History reveals that the first Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs to visit Albania was my late father, Shimon Peres. I had a very warm and enthusiastic conversation upon his return from the visit to Albania. He was very much impressed. He said Albania is a special unique country,” Dr. Yonatan Peres, the son of the late outstanding political figure of Israel, Shimon Peres, has said.
Dr. Yonatan Peres was in Albania to attend the inauguration ceremony of a monument to his father Shimon Peres at a square named after him in Tirana on July 26 this year, and after it he gave an interview to Albanian Daily News.
“Albania is a small country but it is great in spirit. The moment I landed in the airport I felt the hospitality, and when I was getting closer to the city it became warmer. I am very grateful for what has happened and I believe it is just another step for the promotion of the relations between Israel and Albania,” he said.
Dr. Peres disclosed also some features of the character of his father, but, as he said, his philosophy of life was to be optimistic. “I can say that my father was part of those people labeled as ‘hopeless optimist’,” he noted.
“My personal message to Albanians is never to give up even if you are going through rough times. You know as Mao Zedong used to say: ‘Every big journey begins with a first step.’ This is the situation of hopeful Albania. I am sure that in the next 10 – 15 years we will see a different country. Just be optimistic, this is my message!” said Dr. Yonatan Peres, the son of late Israeli President Shimon Peres, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, in the following interview:
– Which are your impressions on the ceremony of the inauguration of the monument to your father at a square named after him in Tirana? How do you evaluate such an initiative undertaken by Israeli Deputy Ambassador Yuvale Fischer and Tirana Municipality?
– Albania is a small country but it is great in spirit. The moment I landed in the airport I felt the hospitality, and when I was getting closer to the city it became warmer. I am very grateful for what has happened and I believe it is just another step for the promotion of the relations between Israel and Albania. I hope to see bilateral cooperation gets stronger. Speaking of my impressions during the ceremony I could notice the feeling of the people who were present and they all were very nice. I was very excited and honored to participate in the inauguration of the monument to my father. I cannot fail to say on behalf of my family and the state of Israel that I am very grateful to the leadership of the city of Tirana and the staff of the Israeli Embassy for the hard work they invested.
I do hope that the event, which happened on July 26, is another landmark in the warm relations between Albania and Israel. I believe that the future to come will be much more better for us. Albania and Israel have much in common. Both countries have suffered for long periods, being ruled by other regimes. They have recovered and are now on the pathway of democracy, freedom, pluralism and innovation. It should be recalled that Albania was one of the states which voted for the establishment of the State of Israel after the Second World War, and in the 1990’s, at the end of the communist regime, the two states established formal relations.
– What can you say on the current level of the relations between Albania and Israel and which is the perception on Albanians among the Israeli people?
– I think that very few people in Israel, actually including me, know much of Albania. Before I came here I had little knowledge on your country. But I can confess that my father was very much impressed by Albanians. Until you come and really get the real feeling, you do not know anything about this country. Sometimes the unknown can be the worst enemy because if you create an image or a story about something you do not know you can be wrong.
In this frame I think that the people-to-people exchanges and especially of the youngsters are very important. For example, Israelis and Palestinians use to play football together, they play other sports together, they do activities together, seminars and they realize that they are all the same. We are all the same! It is just a handful of people that poison the atmosphere.
When I go back, I am sure that I will encourage people to come to Albania, to visit this country because it is amazing. We are not used to good Muslims, we do not see many good Muslims. Albania is an wonderful example with a Muslim majority, but all the ethnic and religious groups live together in harmony and peace, dignity, progress and innovation, all of these values which my father had worked so hard for.
– Israeli media have written a lot about what Albanians have done to save Israelis during the Second World War. What is your opinion on that part of history which links our two people?
– Not Enough! I think that the Israeli media have not written enough on it and I keep repeating it. The average persons do not know about it, only people who go deep inside they understand. I am here for a short time but I have learned a lot of things which I did not know. Jews settled down in Albania, escaping rough times, in the first century, then in the 15th century from the Spanish inquisition, and during the Second World War hiding from the horrors of the Nazis. Throughout these rough times, the Albanian people have been very friendly to the Jews and protected them like brothers. Not everywhere it has been done what was done here. Albanians did not only hid the Israelis but they made them part of their families risking their own lives. This is unbelievable.
So I am sure that the media in our country is not doing its job appropriately. We should do more about it.
– Given your past experience as doctor, what can you suggest to be done better for the promotion of the relations between Albania and Israel?
– I remember that some years ago there was a delegation from Albania headed by the PM and 50 businessmen touring Israel. This is the kind of activities that we like to see. Exchange of know-how, ‘brain’ exchange, and I am sure that you have a ground for a wonderful development of agriculture, hi-tech, economy in every direction, and culture. I am sure that Israel can learn from Albania, too. So we should have more and more interactions. We should note that Albania is in the right pathway improving all the time. I think that the Ministry of Tourism or any PR office in Albania should do more propaganda on Albania in Israel to encourage tourists to come. Incidentally, I met a few people in the square and they were just passing by, and you know what I found out: they were from Israel. They told me what a wonderful country is this. I am sure that I will bring my family, too, after this first visit because it looks like an amazing country. I have not seen much of it, so I am curious to see and learn more on it.
I think I would like to see more cooperation between our governments. I know that my father was here, Mr. Lieberman was here, too, when he was Minister of Foreign Affairs. But I insist that more should be done.
– In the meantime, which is your opinion about the current situation in the relations between Israelis and Palestinians and other Arab countries?
– We are surrounded by Arab neighboring countries. We have also Arab minority in Israel. On a daily basis, we are facing baseless hatred and conflicts for no reason instead of living in peace together. As I am here I recall a trip of mine to Morocco, a Muslin country. Wherever you said that you were from Israel everybody was happy and supportive. I have experienced the same thing here. It is a European country with the majority of the population being Muslims. It does not look like some other Muslim countries. So it is a very good feeling to know that we have Muslims on our side. So you cannot generalize the Muslims in the whole world, and I believe that most of them are moderate and not extremists.
Well, speaking of the situation in my region it is not easy right now. Unfortunately, in the Gaza Strip the situation is not good. You know we have withdrawn unilaterally from that area. We are hoping that Gaza will flourish instead of building tunnels and buying rockets and ammunition against us. It is a pity that a lot of money is being spent on military purposes instead of helping the poor people. It is true that it is not an easy situation but we are hopeful for the future. We need courageous leaders on both sides just like Rabin and Sadat. They dedicated their life for the peace. Without vision and courage nothing good comes out. All these extremist organizations like Hezbollah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and ISIS are taking the world backwards hundreds of years instead of advancing. This, as a matter of fact, is not what the people want. People want to be peaceful, to make a living, to be happy, to love each other, to live in peace together. These terror organizations do not threaten only Israel and its state, but also other parts of the world, including Europe and the US. The result, as it can be witnessed, is millions of poor refugees and victims.
In face of such negative developments we have to see courageous leaders and I believe that one day such a thing will happen. We have to fight the terror, we have to defend ourselves, we have to put our hand forward for peace all the time. We try the alternative of talks, of conversations.
– What can you say something special about your father when he was in pain about the situation in the country or when he was joyful?
– I can say that my father was part of those people labeled as ‘hopeless optimist’. He was optimistic all the time and his comment on the difference between a pessimist and an optimist was: they all die in the same way, but they live in a different way. Sometimes I was really amazed by his optimism. He did so much for the country. However, in the political field he had a lot of enemies. I think some people were jealous and he had a very rough time because of this during my childhood. As one of the founding fathers of Israel, Peres had to face threat and hatred of hundreds of millions of neighboring Arab countries aiming to destroy our tiny state. A lot of blood has been spilled on both sides. However, Israeli leaders have never given up on efforts for peace in the region.
So my father was never discouraged because of such a situation. You know politics could be cruel but he had a thick skin, he believed in what he was doing. He was always calm never showing if he was in pain or joy. I know that he was very satisfied in his heart when the things were going in the right direction like peace agreements. When he was touring the country meeting with wonderful people, entrepreneurs, people who love the country, he was cheerful.
On the other hand, when he was in pain he did not show it much. His philosophy of life was to be optimistic, to be hopeful all the time. And even those who spoke in a bad way in the past, they have now realized that they have made a mistake.
Talking about real pain, I remember the times in the early 1990’s when tension was really high, the Oslo agreement, and the assassination of Rabin. Almost on a daily basis there were suicidal acts and I could see that such events hit him hard. The public was crying and protesting asking him to go home and I could see the pain he had. So the current went sometimes backward, sometimes forward.
However, every time that there was an achievement with our neighbors like peace with Jordan, peace with Egypt, some partial peace with Palestinians, he was very much pleased and happy. In a nutshell these are some of significant features of his character.
– You mentioned in your greeting speech in the inauguration ceremony that he met with Albanian leaders. What could you learn on his impressions on Albania?
– As a matter of fact, we have never had long discussions about political events because it was not spoken much of politics in our family. But it is history which reveals that the first Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs to visit Albania was my late father, Shimon Peres. I had a very warm and enthusiastic conversation upon his return from the visit to Albania. He was very much impressed. He said Albania is a special unique country. Since then, the relationship has tightened with mutual visits, one of them of PM Berisha in 2011, and of PM Edi Rama in 2015, when my father was the President of Israel.
In conclusion of this friendly conversation my personal message to Albanians is never to give up even if you are going through rough times. You know as Mao Zedong used to say: ‘Every big journey begins with a first step.’ This is the situation of hopeful Albania. I am sure that in the next 10 – 15 years we will see a different country. Just be optimistic, this is my message!