TIRANA, April 9 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Europe Matthew Palmer urged here on Tuesday the opposition parties of Albania to end the boycott and take part in local elections in June.
Palmer, who is on a two-day official visit in Albania, said that he does not agree with the opposition's decision to boycott parliament and that boycotting elections would be really bad for the country.
"The decision to boycott parliament cannot be the right solution to this crisis. The opposition needs to find a way to take part in the elections. It would be a really bad thing if opposition didn't take part in this democratic process," Palmer said.
The U.S. official said that he did not come to Albania to negotiate on solving the political crisis, adding that it belongs to the political class to negotiate among them.
When asked about what the Albanian government should do to persuade the opposition to participate in June's local elections, Palmer said that it is not the government's responsibility to persuade the opposition to participate in the elections.
"It is the opposition's responsibility to do so and to work for the electoral reform agenda that is in the interests of Albania and of the Albanian people, to make it public as a political party, and to show the goals they have," he said.
Palmer noted that Albania has a legitimate government, saying that "I'm sure this government will take the country forward."
During his visit in Tirana, the U.S. official held meetings with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party Lulzim Basha and leader of the Socialist Movement for Integration Monika Kryemadhi on current political crisis in the country.
