Albania could reach the final stage of EU accession negotiations by the end of 2027 or the beginning of 2028. This is the scenario foreseen in the European Commission’s draft roadmap for Albania, Montenegro, Moldova and Ukraine. The document, which will be presented on Wednesday by Marta Kos, is based on ten progress reports for these countries.
A diplomatic source in Brussels who had the opportunity to consult the draft shared details with Top Channel journalist Muhamed Veliu. According to the document, the European Commission is expected to assess Albania’s considerable progress in negotiations. In just over a year, all negotiating clusters have been opened, while the interim benchmarks for Cluster 1 have also been met.
Brussels calls for continuity of reforms, stressing that speed must be accompanied by quality. Political polarization, weaknesses in parliamentary oversight and the excessive use of expedited procedures for adopting laws remain concerns for the quality of democratic governance.
According to the roadmap’s projection, Albania and Moldova could complete negotiations by the end of 2027 or the beginning of 2028, while Ukraine by the end of 2029. This timeline matches the ambition of Prime Minister Edi Rama, who has stated that he aims to conclude negotiations by the end of 2027.
Montenegro will also be a focus of the presentation. Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos is expected to state that the country is on the right track to complete accession negotiations by the end of this year, describing its progress as evidence that EU enlargement remains a concrete and achievable objective.