- Ursula von der Leyen is in Tirana, where she is discussing European integration, reforms, and the rule of law with Edi Rama
- While the meeting was taking place, hundreds of demonstrators gathered outside the government building and told the EU not to support the prime minister.
- Clashes with police also broke out during the protest.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Albania, where she was welcomed by the country’s Prime Minister Edi Rama. Von der Leyen was welcomed with an official ceremony and the playing of the national anthems of Albania and the European Union, followed by a meeting focused primarily on Albania’s progress on its path towards EU membership.
The President of the European Commission said after the talks that Albania had made significant progress and that the goal of European Union membership was getting closer.
Brussels is paying particular attention to the implementation of reforms in the areas of the rule of law, the judiciary, public administration and the fight against corruption, which remain among the key conditions for making progress in the negotiations.
The visit to Tirana is part of Ursula von der Leyen’s broader tour of the Western Balkans. After Albania, she will visit Pristina, Podgorica and Skopje.
The European Commission says the purpose of the tour is to discuss the next steps on the European path of the countries in the region, as well as the process of gradual integration into the European market.
As part of this process, Brussels is also preparing dedicated roadmaps for Albania, Montenegro, Moldova and Ukraine, setting out priority reforms, indicative timelines and objectives for advancing in the accession process. At the same time, the European Union is supporting the Western Balkan countries through the €6 billion Growth Plan.
Protest in front of the Government building
While Rama and von der Leyen were holding talks, a protest was held in front of the Albanian Government building. Police put up metal barriers and increased security along Martyrs of the Nation Boulevard, while some protesters attempted to approach the Government building, leading to clashes with the police.
Banners displayed messages calling on the European Union not to support Rama. Protesters accused the government of corruption and of links between state institutions and organized crime, while calling on von der Leyen to take a clearer position on these issues, as they put it.
One of the protest messages read, “No to the European Union with Rama,” as participants sought to use the European Commission President’s visit to put pressure on Brussels to pay greater attention to Albania’s domestic political circumstances.
Protests in front of Rama’s office have been on-going for more than four months. According to reports by Albanian media, they began in opposition to projects involving the construction of tourist complexes in protected areas in the south of the country, including the Vjosa-Narta area and plans involving investors linked to Jared Kushner. Over time, the protest movement grew into broader dissatisfaction with the government’s performance.
During von der Leyen’s visit, protesters also drew particular attention to infrastructure projects financed or supported by the European Union. One of the banners referred to a railway project in Albania, with the message, “Where is the train, Ursula?”
With this message, protesters criticized delays in the implementation of railway infrastructure and the way Albanian authorities are carrying out projects presented as part of the country’s European modernization.
At the same time, Brussels has expressed considerably more positive assessments of Albania’s overall progress towards the EU. The European Commission says that the country has made progress in its accession negotiations and is among the candidate countries currently making significant progress on their European path.
Two pictures of Albania
Ursula von der Leyen’s visit thus presented two different pictures of Albania in Tirana.
One side showed the official Tirana, which presents European integration as a strategic priority and seeks to accelerate negotiations with Brussels. On the other side were protesters who are calling on the European Union itself to take greater distance from the Albanian government and exert stronger pressure over issues of corruption, transparency and controversial investment projects.
For Brussels, however, the main message of the visit is clear: Albania’s EU accession process should continue through the implementation of reforms and fulfilment of concrete conditions. At the same time, the European Commission announced continued support for the region through the Growth Plan and the gradual inclusion of candidate countries in certain parts of the European market.
Following her visit to Tirana, von der Leyen is continuing her tour of the region, during which she will meet with leaders in Kosovo, Montenegro and North Macedonia. Her visit comes at a time when Brussels is seeking to accelerate the enlargement process and clarify the next steps for countries wishing to become members of the European Union.
Visit to Pristina as part of diplomatic tour
As part of her tour of the Western Balkans, the President of the European Commission also held a series of meetings in Pristina, where she spoke with representatives of the authorities of the provisional institutions in Pristina.
According to the statement, she discussed the current political situation, European integration and the implementation of reforms, while the visit was described as an opportunity to exchange views on key issues relevant to the region’s European perspective and its relations with the European Union.
She stressed the importance of institutional stability, describing it as the foundation for everything else, including progress towards the EU. She said that the formation of the Assembly and the Government was an important step, while she identified the election of the president as the next step. She also emphasized the importance of dialogue among political parties in maintaining institutional stability and advancing on the European path.
Von der Leyen expressed her confidence in Kosovo’s European future, highlighting its citizens’ European aspirations and the need to translate this aspiration into concrete progress towards EU membership, including through the Growth Plan.
Speaking about the Growth Plan, von der Leyen said that, out of a total of €882 million, Kosovo had received €62 million in pre-financing, stressing that serious and rapid reforms, as well as fully functioning institutions, were necessary for further progress.
She also announced the start of negotiations on reducing roaming charges, to abolish them between the EU and the Western Balkans. Regarding SEPA, she said that, once it aligned its legislation, Kosovo would be able to join the Single Euro Payments Area, which, according to her, could save companies in the Balkans half a billion euros.
She also described certain steps in relations with the Serbian community as positive, particularly the agreement on missing persons.
At a joint press conference, the prime minister of the provisional institutions in Pristina said that good progress had been made since their last meeting. He said that Kosovo had recorded the highest economic growth in the region during this decade, as well as progress in the fight against corruption, the rule of law, the functioning of democratic institutions, and the protection of human rights and freedoms.
Speaking about European integration and security policy, he stressed Kosovo’s full alignment with the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy, including the sanctions imposed on Russia.
(EUpravo zato.rs)