The advisor of the Albanian Prime Minister hopes that Albania will get a green light for its first Intergovernmental Conference during the Slovenian EU presidency.
In an interview for Euronews Albania, Odeta Barbullushi said that Slovenia has a positive approach to enlargement, but cautioned that it will not be easy as it is the member states that have the final say.
Barbullushi also referred to Bulgaria’s veto on North Macedonia which also acted as an impediment to Albania’s negotiation bid.
“In June we lost an opportunity, but not because of our fault. There is very little to do on our side as it is a bilateral matter with a member state country, which also gets to decide whether to compromise with North Macedonia”, she said.
According to the prime minister’s advisor, finding a solution to the dispute between Bulgaria and North Macedonia might take a long time.
“When these matters go from a technical level of discussion into problems that are historically inherited, it becomes even more difficult to find a solution in a short time span”, she explained.
Furthermore, she reiterated that the EU must deliver on its promises, or else it risks losing credibility.
Launching negotiations does not necessarily mean that membership is behind the door, explained Barbullushi, as she took the example of Croatia’s accession within 6 years from launching membership talks, and contrasted it with Serbia.
“Croatia opened and finalized membership negotiations within 6 years, while Serbia has only opened 6 of the membership chapters in 6 years”, said Barbullushi. “Hence, it is not a process that will open today and conclude after a year”.
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