Brussels – “I have not yet even been in office for a year, but this is already the fourth time we are opening a negotiating cluster with Albania during my mandate.” The fast and “impressive” progress made by Tirana in its EU accession process is perfectly summarised in the words of the Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos.
At the sixth Accession Conference with Albania on 16 September, Cluster 4 – ‘Green Agenda and Sustainable Connectivity’ was opened, including Chapters 14 (Transport Policy), 15 (Energy), 21 (Trans-European Networks), and 27 (Environment and Climate Change). So far, 28 out of 33 chapters have been opened, while “there is only one cluster left to be opened, and I have no doubt that we will do that soon,” Commissioner Kos said at the press conference following the meeting in Brussels.
On this point, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama made it clear that “we are looking forward to opening the last cluster before this year ends.” The ambition to have all 33 chapters open (only five remain) stems not only from the already proclaimed intention to conclude all accession negotiations by 2027, but also from recent progress: “In my understanding, opening five clusters in 11 months is a record,” Rama added.
Backing Albania’s timetable and ambition “with all our energies,” Commissioner Kos warned that “it is not easy to open the clusters, but it is more difficult to close the chapters.” She stressed that Tirana needs to deliver reforms on many fronts, not only on the sensitive issue of respect for the rule of law, but also on environmental protection, one of the main priorities of the latest cluster opened. “Once we have all clusters open, we will start closing chapters as soon as possible,” Kos highlighted.
With his characteristic rhetoric portraying himself as a credible and reliable international leader for the EU—driven, it seems, by genuine passion—Prime Minister Rama emphasised that the accession process comes with challenges, “but for the first time in history we can choose freely with whom we want to marry.” Extending the marriage metaphor, he noted that in the past Albania was united “forcefully with other empires,” whereas now it has the opportunity to join what he called “an empire of values, rights, and safety, where finally our people will be reassured that their freedom will not be taken away.”
The state of EU-Albania relations
Albania’s application for EU membership was submitted in April 2009. EU candidate status was granted in June 2014. In April 2018, the European Commission issued a recommendation to open accession negotiations with Tirana, as Albania and North Macedonia were grouped together under the so-called ‘package approach’, meaning that either both would advance together or neither would.
Due to deteriorating relations between North Macedonia and Bulgaria, Tirana’s path towards EU accession negotiations also stalled until 19 July 2022, when the accession conferences took place in Brussels. On 25 September 2024, the Council positively assessed Tirana’s alignment with the opening benchmarks for the first cluster of chapters.
As of now, 28 negotiating chapters out of 33 are currently open. Cluster 1 – ‘Fundamentals’ was launched on 15 October 2024, Cluster 6 – ‘External Relations’ on 17 December 2024, Cluster 2 – ‘Internal Market’ on 14 April 2025, Cluster 3 – ‘Competitiveness and Inclusive Growth’ on 22 May 2025, and on 16 September 2025 Cluster 4 – ‘Green Agenda and Sustainable Connectivity’. In Tirana, the goal is clear: to conclude negotiations by 2027, with full membership in sight by 2030.
