On October 15, the second meeting of the Conference on Albania's accession to the EU took place in Luxembourg at the ministerial level. This effectively started the country's membership negotiations.
Points of attention
- The start of negotiations with Albania on EU membership took place at the second session of the Accession Conference in Luxembourg.
- The Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the EU emphasizes support for EU enlargement and prospects for the Western Balkans.
- Albania's path to the EU will be divided with North Macedonia due to long-standing disputes between the countries.
- The process of opening chapters for North Macedonia was delayed due to conflicts, which negatively affected the advancement of Albania.
How are negotiations in the EU regarding membership with Albania taking place
According to the EU Council, the meeting opened negotiations with Albania on Cluster 1: Basics, which covers the following areas:
Functioning of democratic institutions;
State administration reform;
Chapter 23 — Judiciary and fundamental rights;
Chapter 24 — Justice, Liberty and Security;
Economic criteria;
Chapter 5 — Public procurement;
Chapter 18 — Statistics;
Chapter 32 — Financial control.
The EU delegation was led by the Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Peter Szijarto, representing the Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the EU, with the participation of the Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement, Oliver Vargei. The Albanian side was represented by Prime Minister Edi Rama.
Albania is making significant progress on its path to EU accession, and the opening of the first fundamental chapter of negotiations is an important milestone in the process. The priority of the Hungarian Presidency is to support EU enlargement, as the Union needs new momentum and perspectives that the Western Balkans can provide. I look forward to Albania's further progress on the path to membership, Sijjarto said.
Albania's accession to the EU
At the end of September, it became known that Albania's path to the EU will be divided with North Macedonia, although until now both countries have been moving together.
Negotiations on the membership of the two Western Balkan states in the EU officially started in the summer of 2022.
However, due to long disputes between Skopje and Bulgaria, the process of opening sections for North Macedonia was constantly delayed, which negatively affected the advancement of Albania.
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