"Albania is negotiating 31 political areas simultaneously"/ Kuko: We are no longer the EU's waiting room, but strategic depth

2025-10-28 19:02:00, Politikë CNA

"Albania is negotiating 31 political areas simultaneously"/ Kuko: We

Socialist Party MP Romina Kuko, in her speech at the 20th meeting of the Albania-European Union Stabilization and Association Parliamentary Committee, said that Albania is simultaneously negotiating 31 policy areas and is approximating its legislation with the EU.

Kuko said that the alignment of foreign and security policy is 100%, not for statistics, but is a political and moral choice.

MP Kuko said that Albania is no longer the waiting room of the European Union, but the strategic depth of the union.

"I am speaking before you not only as an Albanian, but also as a European who believes that the European Union is stronger when its promise reaches every corner of the continent. This is a moment of reflection on the path we have taken together and on the responsibility we share to bring this process to completion until Albania's full integration into the European Union.

Albania is today in the most mature phase of its journey to the European Union, since at the First Intergovernmental Conference we opened 5 out of 6 negotiation chapters, including: Fundamentals, Internal Market, Competition, Green Agenda, Foreign Policy, and the 6th chapter on Agriculture and Cohesion is expected to be opened by the end of the year.

Albania is simultaneously negotiating 31 policy areas and approximating legislation that are not simply fulfilling requirements, but building a governance culture that sees itself as part of the European Union space. The alignment of foreign and security policy is 100%, not for statistics, but is a political and moral choice.

Having a conflict within the continent, Albania has stood by the European Union in every stance, in every sanction, because the voice of Europe must be united especially when its values ??are challenged. We have proven that we are not only beneficiaries, but also contributors to regional stability. As members of the UN Security Council, in the period 2022-2023 Albania spoke with the voice of Europe, in the Berlin Process it was a co-sponsor in the Regional Internal Market.

At the Political Community Summit, we stated that the Western Balkans are no longer Europe's waiting room but its strategic depth, because the Western Balkans are the culmination, the ultimate expression, our region is not on the edge, but in the heart of the continent.

"Integration is not generosity, but the fulfillment of Europe itself ," Kuko declared./ CNA