Prime Minister Edi Rama, in a live connection during the Euronews Enlargement Summit, stated that the report and assessments of Albania’s EU accession journey are positive. He emphasized that five out of six chapters have been opened and that Albania has advanced compared to other countries.
“The report is very positive; the whole year has been positive. We have opened five out of six chapters in just 11 months, which in terms of speed is a record. It’s something that, just a few years ago, we couldn’t have even imagined — and that’s why life is beautiful,” said Rama.
He noted that beyond the work and dedication, the pace of progress depends on two main factors. On one hand, the years of humility when the European Commission recommended opening negotiations, but Albania was refused by some member states. “Through persistence, we trained ourselves in the hardest way to show our true qualities. And in fact, when the moment came, we were well prepared and advanced,” he added.
Rama underlined that it took military aggression for Brussels to wake up. According to him, the usual EU rhetoric — that the Union wants enlargement but is not yet ready to negotiate — has come to an end, and he hopes everything will soon be finalized at the negotiation table.
“Other countries have also waited a long time. As for the second factor — Brussels — it has changed its approach and, unfortunately, it took military aggression to awaken it. Not only at the level of the Commission, which we saw being stubborn, but more broadly. All those usual rhetorical lines like, ‘We love you, we’ll marry you, but we’re not ready to talk right now,’ — that rhetoric is over. A new approach has come. I hope it doesn’t disappear, that this new mindset continues, and that we finalize everything together at the same table,” Rama said.
The Prime Minister also spoke about Albania’s membership in the European Union, stressing that accession could happen before 2030 and that 2027 is a realistic target for Albania to join the EU.
“I can tell you that 2030 is not a date I saw in a dream, but a deadline — the result of a simple calculation. Together with the Commission, we have agreed on a very ambitious calendar to conclude negotiations and achieve membership by 2027. It could even happen sooner,” he added.
