The Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Ferit Hoxha, stated this Monday on Euronews Albania, in an interview with Thimi Samraxhiu, that Albania’s EU accession process has not been blocked by any country and, according to him, the process is continuing.
The minister also emphasized that the process is demanding and complex, and that nine member states will ultimately decide on Albania’s membership. However, no country has blocked Albania from continuing its path toward EU accession.
“I say with full and unquestionable conviction that the process has not been blocked, nor has it slowed down. But if we want to be honest about the process, we must understand its nature. Albania is the first and only country negotiating under this new methodology.
There are 92 fulfilled benchmarks, which the European Commission has accepted, providing explanations and speaking on our behalf based on its report.
As long as the European Commission agrees that these benchmarks have been sufficiently met to build confidence that Albania is on a solid and irreversible path, it deserves to be given the green light and to move on to the next stage, which is the chapters phase.
The process has its own nature and complexity, and it is the member states that will decide. I fully understand that they will have questions. Those nine or however many countries are simply asking questions and follow-up questions; they have not blocked anything.
Go and ask those countries yourselves whether they have blocked us or not, and you will get the answer.
Nothing is easy in the European Union, nothing is easy in the European Commission. They are extremely demanding, and I have said it before, even jokingly: you give one answer, they ask two more questions—that is their nature, and I have seen it myself.
The process is very demanding and very dynamic. There are areas that may seem easier from the outside, but in reality, we must meet them in the best possible way,” Hoxha said.
The post “There is no blockage in the integration process,” Minister Hoxha gives an exclusive response: What has happened with the 9 EU countries appeared first on Euronews Albania.
