TIRANA, July 8 – In a visit to Tirana this week, German Chancellor Angela Merkel assured Albania and other Western Balkan countries there would be no artificial delays in their EU membership prospects, but warned that there is no set timetable for meeting the required standards and that reforms must continue to take place.
“I can assure you that nothing is being artificially delayed and difficulties are not being created — we want progress to be made, but the point in time is not defined,” Merkel said. “There are assessments from time to time of where we stand, and I think it is recognized everywhere that Albania is making good progress.”
She added the promise to have the Western Balkans in the EU stands, and that it is in EU’s and Germany’s best interests and credibility for Albania and its neighbors to succeed in their bids.
“The Western Balkan countries should be assured of the European prospects not only in paper but also in reality,” Merkel added.
The German chancellor made the comments at a joint press conference with her Albanian counterpart, Prime Minister Edi Rama.
They later attended an Albanian-German economic conference, where she echoed her earlier statement.
“It is not only in the interest of the Western Balkans [and] Albania, but also in [the interest of ] EU member countries to give a clear European prospect,” she said. “If there is no peace there [in the Balkans], we shall have more refugees, more challenges to cope with. Peaceful coexistence is a joint interest,” she added.
Prime Minister Rama said Europe would not be complete without the Balkans.
“Nowadays it is clear that the EU needs the Balkans as much as the Balkans needs the EU,” he said at the press conference. “The peace we have achieved so far, over-crossing rivers of blood and years of conflicts among us, has only one answer – Europe. Without the attractive power from the EU our dreams would be endangered to be turned into emptiness.”
Tirana was Merkel’s first stop on a two-day tour of Albania, Serbia and Bosnia, focusing on EU integration, regional cooperation as well as economic and energy issues.
“We have a lot of opportunities of cooperation in tourism, energy, telecommunication,” Merkel said, adding political actors should be more committed to increasing economic contacts.
She said Albania and Germany could do more in terms of economic cooperation, and the Albanian government’s efforts toward a reliable legal system are particularly important.
Merkel urged focus on Albania’s proposed reforms in the judicial system, where the country can draw from the best EU experiences, she said.
Albania, which was granted EU candidate status last year, must fulfill five obligations relating to its public administration and justice system ahead of launching full membership talks.
Merkel said the EU works on fulfillment of particular targets. She added it is the European Commission that decides whether the requirements were met — not she as leader of Germany.
Rama said the Albanian government would meet all the requirements later this year, and would ask for an opening of EU membership negotiations, the next step in Albania’s EU bid.
“We are not asking of any gift, or a generous reduction of the demands, because we are aware that any step ahead should be based on the reality of the transformation of our country. I am convinced this process if first of all valuable here, for us,” Rama said.
Answering a German journalist’s question, Rama added, “I know it seems we are out of fashion in the Balkans wanting to enter the EU at a time when others want to leave it. I understand that, but we do would rather be out of fashion rather than joining an anti-European wave … and head toward an unknown direction.”
The German chancellor was welcomed with cheers and applause by onlookers who had lined up a section of Tirana’s main boulevard to see the official welcoming ceremony in front of the prime minister’s office.
She left Wednesday afternoon for Belgrade and headed to Bosnia on Thursday.
