FX.co ★ Albania to become 29th EU state

The European Council gives Albania another try. Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule shared this tremendous news with the world via his Twitter account. The decision was taken by 28-nation bloc’s foreign ministers at the latest meeting in Luxembourg suggesting an “acknowledgement of reform efforts” by Albania.
Previously, the European Commission has already asked the Council to grant Albania a candidate status and gave positive recommendations on the country’s state of affairs. Albania failed to win the coveted status in 2009, when the Stabilization and Association Agreement came into effect. The agreement constitutes framework of the relations between the EU and the Western Balkan countries for implementation of the Stabilization and Association process. As a result, the visa free regime was established for Albanians.
In practice, it takes up to 5 years before a candidate becomes a member. For this period, a nation has to meet all the EU requirements bringing its political and economic institutions to the set standards and introducing necessary reforms. However, doing this is not a guarantee. Turkey, for example, has been holding a candidate title for 14 years. There is a mixed opinion among the EU states on Albania’s membership. Many experts fear that after the admission, the EU will have to accept all the rest Balkan countries. Given that the European economy is struggling to cope with crisis in the southern counties of the alliance, the EU does not need additional economic problems.