Speaking at the 20th meeting of the EU-Albania Stabilisation and Association Parliamentary Committee in Tirana, Schieder noted that the European Commission has referred to Albania as “a frontrunner” in the accession process.

“This is true,” he said, adding that improvements in living standards and development are evident across Tirana and beyond.

He stressed that accession is not only a technical exercise of opening and closing negotiating chapters, but a transformative process that must translate into daily life.

“EU integration is not just about legislation and institutions; in the end, it concerns the everyday life of citizens,” he said.

Schieder recalled that his latest report on Albania was approved by a large majority in the European Parliament earlier this year, saying the result reflected “the real situation and progress achieved in the country.”

He added that experiences from Austria, Sweden and Finland – which joined the EU more than three decades ago – show that although the path may be long, it ultimately strengthens democracy, civil society and social well-being.

“Albania is moving in this direction and should continue with the same commitment,” he said.

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Spiropali thanked Schieder and MEPs in the Foreign Affairs Committee and the EU-Albania Stabilisation and Association Committee for their support, calling Albania a frontrunner among candidate countries on the path to EU membership.

Parliament Speaker reiterated Albania’s commitment to wrapping up accession negotiations by 2027 and joining the EU within this decade.

“Albania’s Parliament is working closely with the European Parliament and with legislatures of all 27 member states to deliver on our national objective; closing the accession negotiations by 2027 and joining the EU within this decade,” Spiropali stated.

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In an interview with Balkan broadcaster “Insider”, EP Rapporteur underlined that Albania’s plan to open and wrap up all the EU accession negotiation chapters by 2027 was “ambitious but realistic.”

“Albania has an ambitious plan, not only to open the clusters of EU accession negotiations, but also close them by 2027. I have to say that the process of opening the chapters is crucial, but closing them is way more important. Implementing reforms is more difficult, but Albanians are very politically committed to moving forward faster,” said Andreas Schieder, the EP Rapporteur on Albania.

Schieder also praised the judicial reform in Albania, saying the country has delivered in building a modern judiciary that is investigating into all political parties.

“Albania has delivered on an extremely difficult reform, but a modern judiciary is now in place. Albania has created the Special Anti-Corruption Structure (SPAK) that is investigating people from all political parties – some are already in prison,” he said.

Schieder underlined that Albania’s economy shares similar challenges with other countries in the region, adding that the real difference lies in governance and the political will to deliver on reforms.

“Everyone in the region wants a better future. What sets countries apart is the political courage to reform,” Schieder stated.

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In a televised interview on Thursday, EP Rapporteur commented on the political situation, saying the May 11 parliamentary elections in Albania will be challenging in terms of technical and election management aspects.

“The elections will be a challenge, since a new electoral code has been approved to include diaspora and we know that many Albanians live abroad and therefore it will be a technically and administratively challenging process,” he said.

EP Rapporteur noted that the OSCE/ODIHR recommendations had not been includes in the new electoral law and called for a compromise after the elections.

The EP senior official commented on the political climate in Albania, saying Albanian parties still need to work towards a more inclusive political culture.

“I think there is more room to improved political culture, create a better way of discussing between the government and the opposition, between politicians, and so on,” he told “Klan TV.”

The Austrian MEP praised the Special Anticorruption Prosecution Structure, SPAK, for tackling high-profile corruption cases.

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Press service at President’s office said that the meeting focused on political dialogue and functioning of Parliament, Albania’s EU integration process and the regional cooperation.

During the meeting, the EP rapporteur Isabel Santos highlighted President’s role in balancing political life in Albania.

Albania’s contribution and the country’s positive commitment to foreign policy, security as NATO member, and contribution to peace and improvement of livelihood of the citizens in the region were highlighted during the meeting.

President Begaj and EP rapporteur also underlined the need for a reliable justice system that would encourage foreign investments in the country.

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Albanian Assembly said in a press release that Speaker Nikolla appreciated Santos for supporting Albania’s EU integration and her contribution towards recognition of the country’s progress from the European Parliament and other European institutions.

“The EU accession negotiations process calls for stronger supervisory role of Parliament, especially regarding alignment of the national legislation with the EU acquis. Work is underway to strengthen political dialogue in parliament to speed up reforms and the EU integration process,” Nikolla said during meeting.

Speaker Nikolla also underlined that Parliament is working on the Action Plan to deliver on the recommendations set forth by the European Commission in its report on Albania for 2023, the preparation of negotiating positions and the rule of law guides, the public administration reform, as well as the Action Plan on addressing the recommendations included in the Analytical Report for the first group of negotiating chapters.

The EP rapporteur praised Albania’s progress in the EU accession process, congratulated Speaker Nikolla for normalization of the cross-party political dialogue in Parliament and underlined the need for continued political dialogue to consolidate democratic institutions, deliver on EU integration reforms.

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Justice Minister said via a post on the social media that the meeting focused on the justice reform, the new judicial map and the fight against crime and corruption.

“The justice reform progress, implementation of the new judicial map and ensuring citizens’ access to justice, the fight against corruption and organized crime, cyber defence and personal data safety were some of the issues discussed in this meeting,” Manja said.

“We shared the common position that properly delivering on these tasks would shorten Albania’s path towards EU integration,” he added.

The EP Rapporteur Isabel Santos attended the National Council on European Integration a day ago.

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The head of state praised the EP member Santos and her colleagues for drafting the report on Albania last year, highlighting the report’s realism and support for opening the EU accession talks with Albania and the first intergovernmental conference.

President Begaj expressed appreciation for the European Parliament’s crucial support to the EU enlargement process with Albania and other countries in the Western Balkans, underlining that “the support of the European Parliament is necessary to deliver on objectives set in within the process of negotiations and the second EU-Albania intergovernmental meeting.”

Focusing on the new geopolitical developments after the Russian military aggression on Ukraine, the head of state underlined that Albania will always remain a very reliable partner within the foreign and security policy of the European Union and will always align with the EU foreign policy.

The two interlocutors also focused on the recent developments in the Western Balkans region and the specific challenges facing the countries in the region amid the new geopolitical shifts.

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