"Integration should be based on merit"/ Berisha, at the IDU summit: Here are the main obstacles to the process

2026-04-30 12:59:00, Politikë CNA

"Integration should be based on merit"/ Berisha, at the IDU summit:

The Chairman of the Democratic Party, Sali Berisha, participated today in the IDU forum in Zagreb.

During his speech at the forum, Berisha emphasized that Albania's integration process into the European Union must be entirely based on merit, while listing several main obstacles that, according to him, are holding the country back from this objective.

He underlined that Albanians' support for EU and NATO integration remains at the highest levels. However, he argued that the integration process has become uncertain and is being delayed due to internal factors.

According to Berisha, EU integration means more rights for citizens, more freedom, strengthening the rule of law, as well as increased prosperity and security.

Full speech:

As you may have seen, from what Dr. Bashkoff presented, Albania's support for EU and NATO integration is at its highest level. However, Albania's EU integration process has become uncertain and is increasingly moving away due to internal reasons. In my opinion and that of my party, since I speak on behalf of the opposition, the integration process means more human rights, more freedom to guarantee our citizens, the functioning of the rule of law, more prosperity and security.

But the process must, and must be, fully merit-based. Only a merit-based process, as it was in this great country that is a model of success, can be beneficial for the citizens of Albania. I think that at the moment, the main obstacles to Albania's integration into the EU are electoral autocracy.

Last month, V-Dem declared Albania an electoral autocracy. Second, even worse: Albania is the only narco-state in Europe. Drugs in Albania have an extraordinary power. Let me briefly say how it is viewed in Europe - I could not understand it. But if you look at the relationship of Europe with the Albanian currency, you will find the strongest depreciation in the world of the euro and the US dollar in Albania. The strongest! In Mexico, in 10 years it is 17%, in Albania in 10 years it is 32%. 32%!

But what does this mean? This means a serious blow to exports. This means a serious blow to production. This means a construction index three times higher than the European Union average. But this also means that the lowest paid people in Europe pay the highest prices, like in Munich and Paris, for housing. Because - I'm only talking about the economy - in fact, they are the main decision-makers. The third main factor is that there are some very strange initiatives, like the Belgrade-Tirana one, which goes in the opposite direction to EU integration. Since the beginning of these regional initiatives of Aleksandar Vu?i? and Edi Rama, they started with the project of changing the borders. In fact, behind it was the partition of Kosovo.

Fortunately, even though they held the crisis hostage for many years, this idea was rejected. Then they demanded the opening of the borders at a time when the European Union had presented various initiatives for our six countries, to prepare for EU integration. They created these tripartite alliances: Belgrade, Skopje and Tirana. They brought back some nuances of the Cold War and in the end failed. Now, the latest strange initiative is the proposal with an open letter signed by Rama and Vu?i? to the European Union to accept this country with a second-rate integration.

Such a procedure does not exist in the European Union. Therefore, I personally think that the process should be based on merit, but the obstacles are both internal and regional. The most fundamental process for a democratic country is elections and the possibility of rotation of power. If you block this, democracy will fall further and further. If you arrest two leaders of the main opposition parties and put on trial, without any legal grounds, a third one, in an election year, this happened in Albania and Tunisia. Both did this.

If he gives 2.1 billion euros, writes off fines and interest two days before the elections to buy votes, then there are no more elections. If he gives 100 euros to every pensioner for votes, if he decrees 29,000 hectares of cannabis plantations, where for us, one plant brings almost 1,000 euros in income, then it means that he is doing everything to turn the elections into a farce.

Without choices, there is no future. Therefore, in 10 years, more than 1,099,000 Albanians have left for the Schengen area alone, not counting other regions. /CNA