At the General Affairs Council meeting on 24th June in Luxembourg, Ministers from the EU Member States agreed – based on the recommendation by the European Commission – to grant EU candidate status to Albania.

Commissioner Štefan Füle welcomed the decision and said that Albania is one step closer to the European Union, another important milestone on the path to the EU has been reached.

He also added that the granting of candidate status is a logical consequence of Albania’s reform efforts. The report from the beginning of this month and decision of the Ministers is an acknowledgement by the EU of the efforts made and the progress achieved by Albania on its road to accession.

“At the same time it should be seen as an encouragement to continue with existing reforms and embarking on new reforms necessary to prepare Albania for the start of the accession negotiations later on. Let me just recall that over recent months Albania has shown concrete action and continued political will to pursue the process of EU-related reforms. The Albanian government has continued to implement and consolidate reform measures in judicial reform, in the fight against corruption and organized crime”, he concluded.

Along with other Western Balkan countries, Albania was recognized as a potential country for EU membership in 2003. A Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) entered into force on 1st April 2009. In the same month, Albania submitted its application for EU membership. The Commission recommended that Albania be granted EU candidate status in October 2013. The Commission reconfirmed its recommendation in its June 2014 report to the Council.

The European Commission will continue to work closely together with Albania to support its reforms and prepare it for the next step in the integration process, namely the opening of accession negotiations. The opening of negotiations depends on further concrete and sustainable reforms in Albania; agreement from all EU Member States is also required.