“Last chance for Albania”

“Albania has lost too much time in the EU integration race, due to the political stalemate. This is the reason why your country did not receive the candidate status. We are here to help. If our visit will be successful, it will help bringing a new political climate that we hope that will be more stable in the future”, declared Eduard Kukan.

The Romanian European MP, Victor Bostinaru, was more direct when he blamed both political parties for slowing down Albania’s EU integration process.

“Let’s hope that the recent developments will serve for turning the page. There’s a big question for the responsibility of the Albanian elite, and mostly for the political elite of this country. How can they prevent the political war? I’m speaking about both political camps that are responsible for the stalemate. As for the 2012 Agenda, we must say that this is the last chance for achieving success, by accelerating the reforms in order to receive the candidate status, or more dramatically, by losing opportunities that might not repeat in the future. Our message is clear. Don’t play with the integration processes, as if it was an endless issues of political fights”, Bostinary underlined.

The six European MPs met the Parliament Speaker, Jozefina Topalli, and the President Bamir Topi, with whom they commented the January 21st events. European MP Bostinary declared that he had been shocked by the efforts of some political voices who wanted to involve the President in a coup.

Meanwhile, the meeting with the opposition leader, Edi Rama, lasted 30 minutes more than planned.

The second test of a pact

This Friday morning, the candidate status and a series of other issues will bring the Albanian politicians together with the European Parliament MPs, in the fourth inter-parliamentary meeting for the Stabilization and Association between Albania and the EU.

The political circles in Albania and Brussels are looking forward to see if this meeting will be able to produce a joint agreement of the Albanian political parties.

In the last three meetings for the Stabilization and Association between Albania and the EU, the political parties of our countries failed to fulfill the priorities that EU has set for Albania.

The three failed occasions to come with a joint agreement have shown to the European Parliament that our leaders are unable to agree for issues of vital importance in the EU integration projects of their own country.

But the consistent pressure of the international community for dialogue, seem that will play a key role for making the parties find a point of agreement.

However, everything is possible in the Albanian politics, which is never short of last-minute surprises. What is sure, is that the European MPs, with Tanya Fayon among them, do not expect a fourth disappointment from the Albanian politicians.

Top Channel has learned from sources near the European MPs that both Albanian parties have expressed their readiness to approve the agreement. The first pact for the Electoral Reform is a good sign.

Top Channel