Rama urges Albania’s candidacy into EU

BRUSSELS, April 28 – Albanian opposition Socialist leader Edi Rama took part at a meeting in Brussels, Belgium where he strongly urged European Union to soon invite Albania as a candidate country for the bloc.
Albania should submit its official candidacy for EU membership “in the autumn, in September,” that was Rama’s idea, adding ‘we can exploit the wave of optimism generated by the completion of Albanian NATO membership invitation sealed by the Bucharest Summit in April 2-4.”
“I appeal to the EU to review its policy towards Albania in the light of this positive development,” said Rama during a meeting sponsored by the think tank ‘European policy centre’.
Rama said that Albania’s goal of accession into NATO was successful thanks to an unusual bipartisan spirit between majority and opposition in his country, mainly on key reforms of the electoral law and justice.
His offer seems to have been greeted with some coolness by the government. “We are focusing on capitals that have not yet ratified the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA)” between EU and Albania, and “on its application,” according to Albanian NATO national coordinator Glori Husi, also present at the meeting.(Tirana Times Staff)