Behgjet Pacolli: Behgjet Pacolli

Behgjet Pacolli – Das Interview

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BEHGJET PACOLLI

The political carrier from the richest Albanian of the world.Billionaire coming from a small village in Kosovo and the founder of the Alliance for the new Kosovo, exclusively speaks about the exciting changes in his life, friendship with Boris Jeltsin, conflict with Carla Del Ponte and the influence of the President Mesic on his political carrier

Moment of relax
Last week, in the top of the Kosovo pre-elections, Pacolli arrived for a few hours to Zagreb, where he spoke with the journalist of “Nacional”
“I was fascinated, the most, by Mesic and the President of Kazakhstan, Nazarbajev. They have the positive energy, they are constructive and they love their countries. For me, they are the ideal politicians.” Behgjet Pacolli

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Interview: Behgjet Pacolli

The life of the albanien-kosovar Behgjet Pacolli wasn’t boring at all: in 1970, from a small village Marevci, in Kosovo, he went to study in Germany; the successful work in Austria and Switzerland; the foundation of his own company, which is very famous for the restoration of the Kremlin in Moscow in 1996;the contacts with politicians and businessman of the entire world; and to the latest politic engagement with the foundation of the Alliance for the new Kosovo, which is committed to the next elections in Kosovo. The biography of the 56-year-old Albanian, estimated capital over 3 billion US Dollars, therefore called the richest Albanian in the World, seems to be a movie script, too full and irreconcilable. He was born in a countryside called Marevci where there wasn’t even water and electricity, and today he lives in a glamorous villa in Switzerland. Even he studied abroad, he was for a year in the military service “Titova garda” (the protection of the President Tito). He built hotels in Switzerland and Cuba, shopping centers in China, hospitals in Russia and several government houses in Kazakhstan’s capital city. He was friend with the ex-president of Russia, Boris Jeljenin, and also with Bill Clinton, Tony Blair and Margaret Thatcher.

The constructions of the Water park At the end of the 90’s he was negotiating, several times, with Slobodan Milosevic for a peaceful solution for the crisis in Kosovo, and in 2004, in Kabul he successfully negotiate with Afghanistan’s militants, who held in prison for 23 days a woman from Kosovo.

For a few years Behgjet has been married with Anna Oxa, a famous Italian singer, with Albanians origin, after that the newspapers were writing about him and another singer, Ivana Spagna, he was also involved in the corruption affair of Boris Jeltsin, in January 1999, in his office interrupted Carla Del Ponte, in that time, the swiss general prosecutor and confiscate the whole documentation. In the year 2006, he was involved in the millions dollar corruption affair with Marthi Athisari, the UN representative for Kosovo.

Everything that didn’t stopped him, after a long successful business carrier, were he eared billions dollar and become owner of over then ten companies, to start formally, two years ago, with a political carrier: first, in America, he founded a lobby association for the independent of Kosovo, inside of witch were over 60 fames American lobbyists, paid from himself, he also founded a Party for the elections in Kosovo. In that time, after the relationships with the singers, he decide to devote himself to a normal family life, and in 2004, he married the 27-year-old girl and had with her a girl and a boy, the whole family is living in a big villa on the lake of Lugano, in Switzerland. In the Serbian press, he was accused to bay the weapons for the OVK, or that he is the secret owner of the petroleum company OMV, and the others are writing about his private jet and about 70 Mercedes cars.

Even if the Kosovo elections, last week, were in the foul speed, Behgjet Pacolli arrived, on Tuesday, 13 November, to Zagreb for few hours, with his private jet. Like he told, he came to see how is proceeding his biggest project in Croatia, the construction of the water fun park and hotels in Zelina, also to inform the Croatian President about the elections in Kosovo and to get some political suggestions from him.

On vacation from the elections

In this short time, Pacolli fined time also for the interview to “Nacional”, in wich he spokes about the details from his life NACIONAL: Let’s begin with the actuality: the campaign in Kosovo is coming to an end, so how you come to Croatia?

Well, to get some rest from the campaign.. I’m just kidding. I came here because I have a meeting with the president Mesic, in order to inform him about the elections in Kosovo and the problems there, and I wanted to hear his advise for Kosovo, and also to see how is proceeding my project in Zelina.

NACIONAL: What are you building in Zelina?

In Zelina we are going to build the most modern thermal structure with a hotel and water fun park. My partners are already evaluating a few other location on the Adriatic see that could be interesting for some future investments. I love Croatia and the Croatian people, that’s the reason I want to be present also here.

From the teacher to the constructer

NACIONAL: Your biography …. .is full of changes. How did you start your career?

After the secondary school and the gymnasium I went to Hamburg, in Germany, where I started the university; I went there because in Pristina there wasn’t any chance for studying. In Germany I could study and work. When I came back to Pristina, in 1973, I had to do my military service. I was in Tito’s guard, and I was often near Tito . I can’t regret that time, I felt very good as a soldier, there was even the possibility for me to become a professional in the army. Today I’m happy I didn’t, because I don’t know what would have happened to me when Tito died and when Yugoslavia fell apart. After that I went to Austria, where I worked as a director of the sales in a company which was dealing with textile machines. I was very successful in what I was doing, and so, I already started working in Russia for a Swiss company. In three years I went from a position of a regional sales director to the position of the general director until 1990

NACIONAL: What happened then?

Something happened in the company: My chief married my secretary, and because of that, the situation for me completely changed. She started to change, obviously because of her new position, and she began to interfere with my job, therefore I decided to go. Afterwards I established my own company called Mabetex. I started with a modest capital, but it started.

NACIONAL: Even though Mabetex deals with different types of work, it is known today for its big building projects.

That’s right. We started working in 1991 in Russia. Since then I didn’t have any experience in the construction industry, but saw that the infrastructure in Russia were falling apart, and I figured that there could be a lot of work. Then, on the other hand, I still had some limits from the company I used to work for, because of the unfair competition I couldn’t carry on with the some business affairs, and in construction business, I had no limitsThe friendship with the Russian president

NACIONAL: How hard was it to get into Russia? It is known that Russia, because of the mafia and construction lobbies, it is hard to work there.

I started to work in Russia when it was rather peaceful, and I was in the cycles where there wasn’t any chance of contact with the mafia and underground. I did some state project, in which the underground is not present.

NACIONAL: It seems that the friendship with Boris Jeltsin helped you a lot. Since when do you know him?

We have known each other since the end of the 70’s from the Ural, when he was the director of a company of doors and windows. Afterwards he went to Moscow and became the general secretary of the party, and then he was in the building trade Ministry. I often went to visit him, we were really good friends. I constantly brought him some diabetes tablets from Europe. It never occurred to me that he some day would become the Russian president. And even when it happened, our friendship didn’t changed at all. We remained good friends until his death.

After Anna Oxa

NOVI BRAK I DIJECA Even though he drew the attention of the media ten years ago for his wedding with Anna Oxa, an Italian singer who has albanian origins, their marriage didn’t last long. Although, after the divorce, he affirmed that he would have focused more on his work, he got married again four years ago. With his new wife he have had 2 children, the daughter Hana and the son Issa. Pacolli’s family today lives in a gig villa in Switzerland. For years I helped the family and the village, now is the time to help the hole nation.

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NACIONAL: The both of you were even involved in the Mabetex, respectively Kremlin gate affair?

From today’s perspective, and it has past nine years, I can tell you that it was completely made up, but connected to the politic. In that time in Kosovo there was a serious situation and the war was about to begin. In the Russian parliament Jeltsin was enduring big critics, he was accused that he wasn’t doing enough for Serbia. After rumors had been spread about that an Albanian from Kosovo, frequently came to visit Jeltsin, that was me; that was the reason why he is not doing enough for Serbia.

That was also the time that some thought that I was buying weapon with the money I made in Russia, send it to Kosovo and than the Albanian bandits kill our Serbs brothers. Then they found the prosecutor Skuratov, who wrote a letter to Carla Del Ponte to check me. It was a challenge for her, she came into my office, took the whole documentation, checked everywhere, she didn’t find anything. I have never hidden anything. And she was a little bit crazy. As soon as she went back to Haag, the investigation against me was over.

Business accomplishment of a Hotel owner.

NACIONAL: What did you build in Russia?

I started building a factory for baby powder in central Russia, and then a milk factory. After that I went to Jakutsk, in the eastern Russia, where we built two baby food factories. Afterwards I built a big Hospital, and then almost the whole city, that Jakutsk, schools, nine different factories. The extent of that work was around 3 billions US dollars. There we built the biggest closed water treatment plant in the world. Usually that type of project is built in an open space, but there we had to built it inside because of the cold. Probably it is the biggest project in that branch. We used 3 million cubic meters of concrete.

NACIONAL: Then you started the renovation of the KREMELJA, which is known as your most successful project.

Yes. We started the renovation of Kremlin after the attack on Jeltsin in 1993. At that time I already showed myself as a trustful and fair partner, so there wasn’t any obstacle for me to work on this project. The works began at the end of 1994, and we finished in a record term in 1996. That was a very demanding assignment because during the communist government the beauty of Kremlin was uncared and damaged and our duty was to get everything like it was.

NACIONAL: Where did you work after Russia?

I went to Kazakhstan. There we initiated the foundations for a new city, Astana. Today Astana is a beautiful and modern city, and I’m proud that I put in it a lot of effort, knowledge, and hard work. All that you can see it and touch it in Astana.

NACIONAL: Where did you work after that?

In Iran I built a big business centre. We built the facade of the German government. In Saudi Arabia we are working on several projects, even in Mecca and Medina. After that we renovated the theatre Fenice in Venice, which burned down in a fire. In Cuba I built the hotel Melia.

NACIONAL: Apart from a building trade companies you are also the owner of a hotel group

Yes, I have a Hotel Group called Swiss Diamond Hotels with 5 luxurious hotels in Moscow, Lugano, Kuala Lumpur, in Turkey , and Astana, in Kazakhstan; in the future is going to be one in Pristine and maybe one in Zagreb.

NACIONAL: And the film television company?

I have a digital television in Albania; in Pristine we are building a new television with virtual studios; we have the biggest daily newspaper in Kosovo; and I also have a music and management company called B&G Entertainment. We are always looking for new talents, like Loredana Berté, Anna Oxa, Ivana Spagna, Al Bano.

NACIONAL: Since you mention Ivana Spagna, in the media it was said that after you marriage with Anna Oxa, you and Ivana Spagna had an relation.

It was just a joke.

NACIONAL: After your marriage with Anna Oxa your private life wasn’t a public domain any more. What changed that?

A lot had changed in my life in the last few years. I have a three-year-old daughter and a 18-months-old son. My son was named after my father, Issa, and my daughter is Hana. Both of them are beautiful. My new wife, who has 29 years, gave to me the most beautiful gift- My children. I was reborn.

NACIONAL: And your ground up daughters?

The oldest one done an independent carrier as the bank director in Austria, I’m very glad about that, the second daughter is studying economy in Switzerland and has the ambition to manage some day my company.

NACIONAL: Do you still have 70 Mercedes and a private airplane?

I drive just one. You have probably noticed that I’m not the type of a man who boasts about his estate. But I’m not poor, I have to admit that.

Family, relatives, his people

NACIONAL: Tell us a famous person that inspired you the most?

Two men: the Croatian president Mesic, and the Kazahstan president Nursultan Nazerbajev. Both of them have an amazing positive energy, they are constructive people, and they love their country and their people. In my opinion the ideal politician should be like them, and since I have been active in politic, I’m trying to be like them.

NACIONAL: It is known that you are the richest Albanian on the entire world.

I don’t know that. I know that I worked very hard for my success, and I can’t say that I’m poor or that I’m not doing well. Actually, I’m doing pretty good. For years I’ve been helping my family, my relatives and my village. Now it’s time to help my people.

NACIONAL: To whom and witch do you have to thanks for your successful business carrier?

To my big will and wish to create. I have success thanks to my wishes and constructive ideas. When you have a big will, then you can succeed, and I tried to leave always the doors opened.

The lobbing for new Kosovo

NACIONAL: How did you decide for an active career in politic?

I would be very happy if I could just do my job, and if Kosovo was a peaceful and functional state. This unfortunately is not true. From outside I can tell that there is a lot of mistake and harm to the people who live there. There is no economic growth, the unemployment rate is high, there is a huge chaos. Everything is improvised, there is also a lot of corruption and criminality. In some areas there still some banal problem as electricity and water. Seeing all that I couldn’t just stay and watch without doing anything. I was lobbing in America for the new Kosovo in most important crises A year ago a founded a party in Kosovo. It will be committed to the next elections in Kosovo, and definitely will be an important factor on them. From the citizens I’m pretending a permission to start with the work, because I have a big passion to work on the prosperity of Kosovo.

NACIONAL: In these days your politic opponent have been attacking you because of your belief that the problems in Kosovo shouldn’t be solved on the internationally way but directly with negotiations between Belgrade and Pristine. Did you do something similar with Milosevic in 1998?

I went to speak with Milosevic because I thought that there was a possibility to stop the war. Unfortunately for the situation in those days, we didn’t make it. Today I’m very sorry about that, especially because the war couldn’t be stopped for some silly reasons.

NACIONAL: Which reasons?

I wouldn’t talk about that now. One day you will have the possibility to read it in my book.

Alles über Behgjet Pacolli, klicken sie hier:

www.csis.org

http://www.akr-ks.com/www.akr-ks.com%20e%20reja/press/2008/bota%20sot%2005.12.2008.pdf

www.mabetex.com

www.swissdiamondhotel.com

www.generalstudio.ch/bp/bpswitzerland/index.htm