Rehn on Albania’s interim agreement with EU

TIRANA, Dec. 1 – Olli Rehn, European Union Enlargment Commissioner, has sent the following letter to the Albanian media ahead of the start of the bloc’s interiom agreement with Albania.
Today, on December 1st, an Interim Agreement, which will allow Albania and the EU to start benefiting from increased trade with each other, enters into force. From now on Albania will benefit from practically unlimited duty-free access to the EU market.
The agreement is “interim” because it will only be in place until the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) between Albania and the EU is ratified in all EU member states and enters into force. I expect that to be done by 2008. Both the SAA and its Interim Agreement have the potential to be of great benefit both to the EU and to Albania.
The signature of the SAA a few months ago is an important milestone on Albania’s path towards the EU. It is also a significant step for the EU itself, through which we are confirming and deepening our contractual relations with Albania.
The signature was made possible by Albania’s progress in pushing forward reform and in demonstrating that it can make its democratic institutions work. Albania’s achievement demonstrates a core principle of the EU integration process – if countries focus their efforts on reform, they can move forward towards the EU. There is no automatic scheme, the pace by which a country moves towards joining the Union depends on own merits and its capacity in implementing political and economic reforms.
The SAA marks the beginning of a new phase in the EU’s relations with Albania. It provides a mutually agreed framework for the EU and Albania to work together in a wide range of fields, and it sets up structures through which we can jointly monitor progress.
Implementing the SAA will be a challenging task for Albania, as it is for any country with such an agreement. The agreement creates significant obligations in terms of trade, rule of law, human rights, democratic standards, regional co-operation and new legislation.
But first and foremost the SAA represents an important economic and political opportunity. Trade liberalisation should bring significant economic benefits to Albania but also to the EU. Bringing Albanian laws into line with those of the EU will bring Albania closer to European standards and help further strengthen the ties between us.
A good track record in implementing the SAA (the interim period counts as well) is also a prerequisite for the next step in the EU integration process, which in Albania’s case would be to achieve “candidate status”.
The European Commission will do its utmost to ensure that the full benefit of the SAA and its interim agreement is achieved. Of course I expect no less from our Albanian partners.