One of the main negotiators of the pre-electoral deal between Prime Minister Edi Rama and opposition Lulzim Basha, MEP David McAllister, reinforced the declarations of EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn that EU accession negotiations are only ongoing with Serbia and Montenegro, while the other Western Balkan countries still have a long way to go.
In an interview with Deutsche Welle, McAllister confirmed that “The President of European Commission, Jean-Claude Junker, has made it clear that during this legislature (until June 2019) we [the EU] will not accept any country.”
As regards the possible opening of EU accession negotiations with Albania, McAllister stated:
[Membership] depends on the candidate states, how the work is progressing. If everything goes without problems, Albania could possibly start official accession talks next year.
