Albania has taken a significant step toward joining the European Union. At a meeting in Luxembourg, Albania formally opened talks on Cluster 1 – Fundamentals, as part of its EU accession negotiations.  

The meeting was attended by leaders from both the EU and Albania. Hungary’s Foreign Minister, Péter Szijjártó, represented the EU, along with EU Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi.  

Albania was represented by its Prime Minister, Edi Rama. 

The talks focused on several crucial areas: 

• Strengthening democratic institutions 

• Improving public services and administration 

• Reforming the justice system and upholding fundamental rights 

• Enhancing justice, freedom, and security 

• Improving public procurement processes 

• Economic criteria 

• Developing better statistics systems 

• Strengthening financial controls 

These areas are part of the “Fundamental Cluster” which is the first group of topics countries discuss when joining the EU. 

The EU has set certain goals that Albania needs to achieve before moving on to the next steps. This includes progress in the rule of law and meeting standards in justice and security. 

Péter Szijjártó expressed optimism about Albania’s progress, saying: “Albania has reached another important milestone on its journey to join the EU. We are eager to see continued progress as the country moves closer to membership.” 

This development shows Albania’s commitment to joining the EU and making necessary reforms. The EU will continue to monitor Albania’s progress and will meet again to assess developments and plan future steps. 

In 2020, the EU updated its process for accepting new members, organizing discussions into six main areas, called clusters. The “Fundamental Cluster” is the first to be opened and focuses on key reforms that set the pace for the rest of the membership talks.