Brussels, 06/06/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Sunday 5 June, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini called on the Albanian parliament to adopt its reform of the judicial system, which would be “the start of a new chapter” in the shared EU-Albania history.
“Comprehensive and deep” judicial reform is “essential for the country's next step towards integration within the EU”, Mogherini said in a press release. The reform requires a two thirds majority of the 140 members of the Albanian parliament to be approved and is a prerequisite for the opening of Albania's EU accession negotiations.
However, the Democratic Party is opposed to the draft legislation. Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama was due to meet the party's leader, Lulzim Basha, to discuss the reform on Monday 6 June. Mogherini thus hoped that all the political forces would take advantage of these latest consultations in order to approve the proposal put to the parliament. “This is a vote for which every member of parliament of every political group bears particular responsibility”, Mogherini stated, adding that the Albanians should demonstrate their commitment to this reform by adopting it and implementing it.
On Wednesday 1 June, the head of the EU delegation in Albania, Romana Vlahutin, warned that Albania's progress on its European path would be seriously delayed if the reform of the judicial system was not approved before the summer break. “By approving this reform before the summer recess and by starting its implementation next autumn, Albania will have the chance to receive a positive recommendation from the EU Commission for the opening of negotiations for membership”, she said, adding that if momentum was lost, Albania would lose not only one, but several, years on its European path. The country will hold elections in 2017. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)