The EU Commission has recommended Albania be granted official candidate status for membership in the bloc, but it made clear the status is conditional upon meeting further obligations, including seeking continued political cooperation on reforms and fighting corruption – as well holding proper elections in 2013.
Tirana Times
TIRANA, Oct. 9 – The European Union’s executive branch recommended this week Albania be granted official candidate status for membership in the bloc, but it made clear the status was conditional, including seeking continued political cooperation on reforms and fighting corruption. It also made clear memberships talks would not start unless the next parliamentary elections meet EU standards.
The recommendation came in the EU Commission’s annual report on enlargement to the European Parliament.
“The commission recommends candidate status for Albania, as key measures are met in the areas of the judiciary and public administration reform,” Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule said during the report’s presentation. “To be able to proceed to the next phase, the opening of accession negotiations, Albania should prove particularly consistent implementation of commitments and completion of key priorities it has not yet met. The focus will be on the rule of law and fundamental rights. A stable political dialogue remains essential for a successful reform process.”
Commissioner Fule added, “The 2013 elections will be a crucial test and a prerequisite for every recommendation for the opening of negotiations.”
The report takes note of Albania’s progress in certain areas and seeks more work in others.
“Overall, Albania has made good progress towards fulfilling the political criteria for membership of the EU and delivering a number of reforms against the key priorities of the commission’s 2010 opinion,” the report notes. “Good progress was achieved in key political reform areas such as the proper functioning of parliament, the adoption of pending laws requiring a reinforced majority, the appointment of the Ombudsman and the hearing and voting process in Parliament for high court appointments, as well as the modification of the legislative framework for elections, leading to the fulfillment of the four key priorities concerned. Albania is well on its way towards meeting the two key priorities regarding public administration reform and improving the treatment of detainees.”
The report adds there was moderate progress regarding the reform of the judiciary and the fight against corruption.
“In order to keep the current reform momentum and consolidate its achievements to date, Albania would need in particular to focus on consensually adopting the revised rules of procedure for parliament and the amendments to the Laws on the High Court and on Civil Service. Ensuring sustainability of the political dialogue is essential for the functioning of democratic institutions and for Albania’s EU path,” the report further recommends.
Third time is the charm
This was Albania’s third attempt to get candidate status, after two refusals in a row. The country is late, but when official approval comes by the EU parliament and council, it will join the ranks of all the other Western Balkan nations, with the exception of Bosnia and Kosovo, which have yet to get the status.
After two years of refusal, Albania today you open a window in the integration process, and now it’s up to her to overcome the conditions set. “We will send a report as soon as possible when the achieved progress. In this report we will highlight Albania’s further efforts in the fight against corruption and organized crime.
The European Commission set out 12 targets for Albania in 2010 in order to achieve the status, and the latest report assessed that progress. Only six of these were met or partially met.
The report noted increased cooperation in parliament for key reforms between the opposition and ruling parties. The report also noted moderate progress in reform judicial system and the fight against corruption.
“Albania needs to further accelerate the implementation of judicial reform strategy to ensure the independence, efficiency and reliability of judicial institutions,” the report said, noting the process of appointing judges to top courts remained murky and political.
It was also scathing about corruption.
“Corruption is prevalent in many areas and continues to be a particularly serious problem,” it said, noting punishment remains rare as compelling investigation, prosecution and punishment in cases of corruption at all levels, including senior officials did not exist.
That’s because institutions in charge of the investigation, inspection and punishment remain vulnerable to political pressures and inappropriate influence, according to the report.
Sequi: Integration in the interest of all Albanians
EU Ambassador to Tirana Ettore Sequi was the bearer of good news this week as he met with top Albanian officials to deliver and discuss the report.
“The process of integration is in the interest of all Albanians,” Mr. Sequi said at a press conference.
Ambassador Sequi delivered the progress report to all of Albania’s top political leaders, including Prime Miniser Sali Berisha and Opposition Leader Edi Rama.
Mr. Berisha said he remains committed to fulfilling unmet obligations, and expressed joy at this latest achievement toward EU integration.
Mr. Rama said he welcomed the progress report. He added setting the parliamentary elections of 2013 as a condition for starting further talks was an achievement for the opposition.
At a press conference, Mr. Sequi highlighted some of the key developments that led to the positive recommendation.
“Progress in some important laws for the country, such as the Administrative Court and the laws pertaining to the fight against corruption played an important role in the European Commission’s decision,” he said.
The ambassador added the EU executive branch had not given any gifts to Albania and that there will be another report at the end of the year, stressing progress should be ongoing to start membership talks.
The U.S. embassy in Tirana also congratulated Albanians on this week’s achievement.
“We strongly support Albania’s EU integration efforts and urge all parties to continue to disclose the necessary cooperation to complete and implement reforms that remain pending,” the embassy said in a statement.
A twisted road
After Albania’s application for EU membership in April 2009, the 2010 Commission Opinion responded with 12 conditions that the country must meet to merit candidate status and the opening of accession negotiations. According to the progress report a year ago, the country had not sufficiently met a single condition. This latest report says Albania had only fully completed four priorities and partially two others.
Since each member state must approve Albania’s status, the commission said it expects more work done until December so there can be tangible results in the fight against corruption and organized crime.
The other half of the 12 priorities, which include mainly the field of rule of law and elections, are conditions to be met if the country wants to open accession negotiations.
Commission’s recommendation in brief
Improved dialogue between government and opposition has allowed good progress on substantial reforms. This leads the Commission to recommend candidate status subject to completion of key measures in the areas of judicial and public administration reform, and parliamentary rules of procedures being revised. The Commission will report to the Council once this is done, also taking into account Albania’s commitment to fight corruption and organized crime. For the Commission to recommend opening accession negotiations, in particular sustained implementation of reform commitments and completion of the remaining key reforms will be needed, and the conduct of the 2013 parliamentary elections will be a crucial test.
