So, how is it from here? Because it's really to celebrate. Thank you.
No, because now you go and I stay. Sure. We will greet you once again. We keep every now and then. Congratulations really for the work done.
It's beautiful. Nice to see that, right? Nice. Come on.
Good morning everyone and welcome to the press conference following the intergovernmental conference between the EU and Albania. It is my pleasure to introduce the Danish Minister for European Affairs, Mrs. Maribier, the Commissioner for Enlargement, Mrs. Marta Kos, and the Prime Minister of Albania, Mr. Edi Rama. We will start with brief statements and then we will open the floor for questions. Minister Vier, the floor is yours.
Danish Minister for European Affairs
2:42 ↗
Thank you. Today marks a major milestone in Albania's enlargement negotiations with the opening of cluster five. All of the negotiations, six clusters, have now been opened. Albania has put a strong effort into implementation, reform, and aligning to the EU legislation. As a result, Albania's progress in the negotiation is advancing at a steady pace. The first cluster was opened in September only last year, and in a little more than a year all clusters have been opened, including two during the Danish presidency. This is record speed.
This milestone serves as a recognition of Albania's hard work towards your European future. The commitment to reforms demonstrated by the Albanian government and its people is truly impressive. The enlargement reform report from the commission shows that Albania continues to move forward on the fundamentals, particularly on justice reform and in the fight against organized crime and corruption.
The next step is meeting the interim benchmark under the fundamentals. This step will lay the groundwork for beginning the closed negotiation chapters. I encourage Albania to maintain reform momentum and promote inclusive political dialogue. Enlargement is a priority of the Danish presidency. Today we are delivering yet another result.
If Albania continues on this path with the same focus, pace and quality as we see now, I am sure that membership will be achieved in a very near future. Albania belongs to the European family. I want to thank you, Prime Minister Rama, for the cooperation during this semester. It is truly impressive how fast you are delivering. All I can say is keep it up, and you will be part of the European Union sooner rather than later. Thank you.
Thank you. And then, Commissioner, today is a special day not just for Albania concluding all or opening all the clusters, but also for the European Union, because today shows that the EU offer works and that we can count on Albania also in the future. This success wouldn't be possible without the firm political commitment of Albania and by the strong engagement of all EU member states to support Albania's progress. I'm grateful to the Danish Presidency, Maribier, for your efforts to make this milestone possible, and we are committed to bringing Albania into the European Union.
As you said, Albania's success is the result of the authorities of Albania working with civil society and other stakeholders in the implementation of important EU reforms, and it is the result of Albanian citizens asking for change and supporting these changes. The EU reforms bring changes in the political system, in the economy, but also in the Albanian society, making it truly European, and therefore Albania is the best example of the transformative power of enlargement. It shows that when you deliver, you progress. You are an inspiration to many in the Western Balkans, for many citizens who would like to see the same determination and change in their countries.
Opening all clusters is a great success, but closing them is the real prize. The next years are a moment of truth. Your success will be determined by how well and how quickly you are adopting and implementing European legislation. Now is the moment to accelerate, especially in critical areas such as justice reform, judicial independence, and the fight against corruption, property rights, minority issues, and media freedom. And the next step is for Albania to meet the interim benchmarks.
This will not always be easy, as it is with every candidate country, but you, dear Edi, have something very powerful in your favor: the widest public support of all candidate countries. More than 90% of Albanians see their future in the EU. Work with them all, with the opposition in the parliament, with civil society and the private sector, and this will be the best guarantee for Albania's future success. The commission will continue to support and advise you in taking up the challenges of European Union membership. Our role is to make sure Albania is well prepared when it joins. We are committed, I'm personally committed, to support building a prosperous future for all, Albania's home in the European Union.
Thank you, Commissioner. Prime Minister Florio. Who could have thought that we would be here today, opening all clusters, until not long ago? It was something that seemed impossible, and we were at the point to get used to pushbacks and to punches in our stomach. But I believe that all the journey made us stronger, made us more conscious about the big deal of this process, and made us more mature.
And here we are today, in front of what was still a dream only a bit more than a year ago, and now it has developed into a working plan, a reality that we have to work with in our daily life. So without any platitude or formal words, I want to thank wholeheartedly the two exceptional persons that are on my left side, Marie and Marta. Marie for having transformed the words of the Danish presidency into deeds when it comes to enlargement, by supporting and pushing forward, and Marta for championing the accession process of Albania and also of the whole Western Balkans, with a fervor and very strong will that make us all feel energized and feel really in debt if we don't deliver in time.
On the other hand, I am absolutely inspired by all these months and by the strong support the enlargement process, or the reunification process of Europe, is getting. And we are going to do everything in our hands to go forward with the same intensity, with the same discipline, and with the same hard work to deliver and to make sure that this common project that we are building brick by brick together with our partners here in Brussels and with our partners in the member states does not stop.
So, what to say more? Today, Albania comes out with this first phase with pride and with an even bigger sense of responsibility. As Marta said, we don't represent here a political party or just a political view. We represent here a whole nation that supports, as none, the European Union and the European Union accession more than 90% of our people, and I'm sure that the very few that are in the few percents remaining think they simply did not have a good day when the survey was being done, because I hardly see a single Albanian thinking that the EU accession is not the best idea and it's not the horizon we have to aim for the sake of our children.
And in concluding, I want to add that both the hard way and the soft way we went through taught us something very important: never take anything for granted in Brussels. So when they smile, enjoy, but don't take it for granted, it can disappear from their faces just like this. So keep going and do the hard work and respond in every circumstance with humility and with results. These two things are the things that these people appreciate the most.
And as I say, with the mentor on one side, the commission, with the elders on the other side, the member states, we are in really good hands. If we never forget that at the end, it's the work of our hands that matters. Not for them, but for us, not for the commission or the member states, but for the Albanian people and the next generations to come. Thank you again, Marie. Thank you, Marta. And through you, a big thank you to everyone that was with us in the room before coming here to this press conference. We really appreciate, and we will do everything to be always where we should be based on the plan to end this first phase by concluding the accession talks within 2027, and then to enter in the phase of political support and full accession. So again, stop me, because otherwise I'll not stop saying thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you, Prime Minister. Now let's open the floor for questions. Please start by stating your name and media.
Public television. Albania has made a historic step in this process. I want to know what message do you have for the Albanian citizens, for the political factors, and for the skeptics, for example. Thank you.
I don't know who is skeptical. No, the 9%. No, the message I have for the citizens of Albania is that this is all your work. You know, we can help, we can be at your side, but you are the ones who are delivering. And once you have gotten the candidate status, it is your responsibility and it should be also your commitment to be successful on the European path. But at the same time, it is also the responsibility and commitment of the European Union, of the commission and the member states. And you know, it is not difficult to be positive towards your country because you deliver. And you know, if we would need a case of what actually the EU accession process is, we just have to look to your country. It is about the transformation and it is about the strong leadership.
You know, in Edi Rama you have a leader who is not looking back in the past and looking for the excuses why something cannot be done. Dear Edi, you are the leader who is looking in the future and finding the solutions for the existing challenges we all together have. And something more: we have heard today at the IGC that the alignment of Albania with the European common foreign and security policy is 100%. In this geopolitical situation, we really need partners we can rely on, and Albania is one of them.
To the skeptics, you know, if you would have the result that 100% of the people of Albania are for the EU membership, I will be skeptical because this is like in the old communist times. So it's always good to have people who are skeptical or to ask questions. And we still have now a lot of time also during our communication campaign to talk to those people and also to the citizens in the European Union. So I will finish with this: Albania, just go on. We are preparing a home for you in Europe.
