Albania, Kosovo get closer by highway built by Turkish-US venture

The highway is seen as a major step towards closer integration of Albania and the ethnic Albanian government in Pristina.

Completion of a tunnel under a 60 km (37 miles) stretch of road linking the Albanian coastal resort of Durres to the border with Kosovo will slash hours off travelling time for Kosovo holidaymakers heading for the sea.

Inaugurating the tunnel by symbolically meeting halfway in Kalimash, Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha and his Kosovan counterpart, Hashim Thaci, said: "Tirana and Pristina were closer than ever and would get even closer".

Kosovo consists of a majority of ethnic Albanians who say they were cut off from Albania by the "injustices of history".

Their flags stood side by-side in a poster above the tunnel that read "Forever".

"First, this is the tunnel of the union of the nation. We showed today that there are no mountains, no hurdles that could divide this nation spiritually or physically," he told a cheering flag-waving crowd.

The 60-km section inaugurated on Sunday, including a 5.6 km-long tunnel and 29 bridges, has cost 720 million euros ($1.019 bln). Built by a U.S.-Turkish venture of Bechtel and Enka, it cuts through a rugged and poor region.

When the 160 km road is finally completed next year at a total cost of 1.1 billion euros ($1.557 bln) the trip of around six hours to Kosovo's border from the Albanian capital of Tirana will take just two hours.

"This road will carry ideas, goods and bring economic growth for our countries as well as our dream for national integration and a future in the EU and NATO," said Thaci.