The formal start of EU accession talks comes days after opposition supporters and police clashed on the streets of Tirana.
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Albania launched the first chapter of accession negotiations with the European Union in Luxembourg on Tuesday, aiming to advance a decade-long effort to join the 27-nation bloc.
Tuesday’s accession meeting will be the second to be held between the EU and Albania since the two countries became candidate countries in 2014. This will allow Brussels to scrutinize the so-called “fundamentals” of membership, including how the country aligns with human rights and rules. the functioning of laws and democratic institutions;
Negotiations on these issues will continue until the end of the accession negotiations, and progress in implementing Brussels’ demands will determine the pace of the entire process.
The talks come amid concerns that tensions between Skopje’s nationalist government and the EU’s neighbors will flare up again, with EU ambassadors announcing in late September that Albania was cut off from neighboring North Macedonia in its membership bid. Approved.
EU Ambassador to Albania Silvio Gonzato told Euronews that the talks could see Tirana join Montenegro as a “top candidate” for membership.
“There is no Plan B for Albania,” Gonzato said in September. “There is clear cross-party agreement regarding Albania’s membership in the EU.”
But the accession talks come amid mounting domestic pressure on Prime Minister Edi Rama, who has ruled since 2013 and has overseen his country’s consolidation as a leading EU candidate.
Last week, opposition supporters took to the streets of Albania to demand Rama’s resignation after a lawmaker from former Prime Minister Sali Berisha’s pro-EU Conservative Democratic Party was jailed on a defamation conviction.
Opposition parties say Mr Rama rules with an iron fist, abusing his power to silence critics and weaken political opponents. Berisha himself is under house arrest due to corruption allegations in the previous government.
Fredi Belleri, the Greek mayor of a town in southern Albania and a member of the European Parliament, was released last month after being detained on suspicion of vote-buying, a charge hotly contested by Greece.
His release helped secure Athens’ approval to begin accession negotiations, which require unanimous approval from all member states.
In Brussels, Mr. Rama remains a reference to Western Balkan countries as EU officials seek to inject new impetus into the bloc’s dormant enlargement policy, which has rocketed to the top of the political agenda in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It has become a person.
Consultations to tackle corruption
One of the issues in the negotiations is likely to be steps taken by Tirana to address high levels of corruption.
In November last year, the European Commission, in its annual assessment of candidates’ progress towards EU membership, said: “Despite some progress and continued efforts in the fight against corruption, it remains an area of serious concern. ” he said.
The 2023 annual survey by the US State Department found that “corruption existed in all branches and levels of government.”
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An EU official told Euronews on condition of anonymity that corruption permeates all aspects of national life and poses a major challenge to Albania’s EU integration.
President Rama has prioritized the fight against corruption and organized crime among his reform agenda, with the ambition to be ready for membership by the end of the century.
“Albania has been praised for its track record in the fight against corruption and organized crime,” Ililiana Joni, an analyst at the Carnegie Europe think tank, told Euronews. “The government still needs to do much more. More needs to be achieved in protecting fundamental rights, freedom of the press and freedom of expression.”
However, Albania’s firm determination to align itself with the EU’s foreign policy is likely to help it move along with its proposals. “Albania is fully aligned with the EU on all sanctions and on all issues of the EU’s common security and defense policy,” Joni said.
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“Since 2009, it is the longest-serving NATO member among the Western Balkans,” she added.
Brussels bets on strategy to pump cash into reforms
EU executives hope new growth plans for the Western Balkans will accelerate progress on its notoriously long membership. Seven candidate countries in the Western Balkans will receive €6 billion worth of EU investment over the next three years in exchange for reforms aimed at bringing their economies and societies closer to the EU.
The 6 billion euros, made up of 2 billion euros in subsidies and 4 billion euros in concessional loans, will be distributed according to each country’s GDP and population, but will not include so-called “reforms” aimed at bringing countries into line. It will only be available if you implement the “Agenda”. Compatibility with EU laws, standards and practices.
Countries that fail to meet their reform goals may have their allocated funds diverted to other countries in the Western Balkans.
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EU officials say the model is designed to create “competition” between neighboring countries and encourage faster reforms.
In the same month, EU officials confirmed that funds earmarked for Serbia and Kosovo would be blocked and diverted to other countries unless both sides joined an EU-led dialogue aimed at normalizing relations.
