In a social media post following a meeting with Prime Minister Edi Rama, McGrath said Albania has made significant progress but still had important work to do before joining the EU.

“The place for Albania is in the EU, and it is one of the frontrunners in the EU accession process,” McGrath said, adding that the bloc would continue to support the country throughout its path to membership.

Their talks focused on Albania’s progress in implementing judicial reforms and strengthening the rule of law, which McGrath described as the “political anchor” of the accession process.

He also praised the Albanian government’s progress to date, saying the country has established a strong track record of reforms and a clear ambition to join the bloc.

“There is a strong track record of progress and a clear ambition. Now, this momentum must be maintained to deliver lasting and irreversible results,” McGrath said.

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Speaking at a joint press conference with the visiting Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, Osmani also said that Kosovo’s membership with the Council of Europe is to the benefit of all citizens of Kosovo and would help the efforts to further advance human rights protection.

She stated that it is time for the Kosovo-European Union relations to be taken to a new level.

“Kosovo deserves the status of a candidate country. Kosovo embodies European values, and continued efforts are being made to align national legislation with the EU laws. It is the right moment for us to receive the status of a candidate country,” President Osmani said.

In relation to the recent developments in the country, President Osmani underlined that Kosovo has taken meaningful steps to de-escalate the situation in the country’s north and called the EU punitive measures as disproportionate and detrimental to the citizens of Kosovo.

As far as the security situation is concerned, President Osmani said that the lack of measures against Serbia in relation to the terrorist attack and the act of aggression on September 24th in Banjskë only encourages it to carry out similar acts again, which affects not only the stability of Kosovo, but also of the region.

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