Welcome from the Chair

Welcome to the site of the European Parliament's Delegation to the EU-Albania Stabilisation and Association Parliamentary Committee (SAPC).

As the elected Chair of this delegation, I preside over our delegation's regular meetings and act as a Co-Chair of the SAPC with the Albanian Parliament. Our joint meetings usually take place twice per year, alternating between the European Parliament's working places (Brussels or Strasbourg) and Albania.

Albania applied for EU membership in April 2009 and has been an EU candidate country since June 2014. Following the country's tangible and sustainable progress in meeting the political criteria and the objectives related to the five key priorities for the opening of accession negotiations, Council agreed to open accession negotiations on 24 March 2020. The European Parliament called for the start of accession negotiations with Albania, including in its annual Resolutions, underlining the transformative power of EU enlargement and the importance of including the Western Balkans into the EU. Council adopted the Negotiating Framework in July 2022, and the EU held its first intergovernmental conference with Albania immediately after that. The screening process is currently under way. The European Parliament follows developments relating to the reform process in Albania very closely, and the related issues are discussed regularly with Members of the Albanian Parliament in the EU-Albania SAPC.

Albania has shown clear commitment and determination to the EU integration path in recent years. The European Parliament encourages further tackling the remaining challenges and supports further reforms, particularly the fight against corruption at all levels, fight against organized crime, promotion of the rule of law as well as judiciary reform and protection of minorities, especially ethnic minorities. For the reform process to be successful, it needs the continued support of the whole society. It should be accompanied, therefore, by a genuine political dialogue and sustainable cross-party cooperation, primarily in the Parliament. Ensuring inclusive political dialogue and a stronger role for civil society organisations remain essential elements of a well-functioning democracy.

We are ready to contribute to Albania's efforts to fulfil all the conditions necessary for further stages of the accession negotiations and are looking forward to a constructive and fruitful dialogue in our future exchanges.

Manolis KEFALOGIANNIS, MEP

Chair