Albania is making progress in its accession negotiations with the European Union, but it remains unclear whether the political will alone will be sufficient to achieve the goal of membership by 2030.

German Minister of State for Europe, Gunther Krichbaum, speaking at the Conference of European Ministers, stated that Albania is on a good path toward the EU, but emphasized that there is still room for improvement, particularly in the area of rule of law.

According to Deutsche Welle, Krichbaum also underlined Germany’s position that internal reforms within the European Union must take place before any new enlargement.

The changes include sensitive issues such as the right of veto. “This has to move in parallel, because otherwise a situation could arise where the EU’s capacity to act will be very limited,” he said.

Meanwhile, Albania has today opened four new negotiating chapters, a step signaling concrete progress in the integration process.