On Thursday 25 March, MEPs gave their support to the opening of EU accession negotiations for Albania.
In the report by Isabel Santos (S&D, Portugal) which they adopted (581 votes in favour, 61 against and 45 abstentions), on the Commission’s 2019-2020 report on Albania, MEPs explain that they are in favour of convening the first Intergovernmental Conference without further delay once the negotiating framework has been adopted by the EU Council.
Parliament calls on the Albanian authorities to step up their efforts to strengthen political dialogue and the functioning of the country’s democratic institutions, while improving the conditions for media pluralism and civil society.
It also calls on the country to continue work on the rule of law, the justice sector, the fight against corruption and organised crime, and public administration reform.
The Albanian government should give priority to measures to mitigate the health and socio-economic consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic, say MEPs.
For the European Parliament, the general elections of 25 April 2021 will be essential for the consolidation and renewal of the country’s democratic procedures and structures and for achieving a higher level of political stability.
See the report: https://bit.ly/3lQcWbi (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)