On the eve of the regional prime ministers’ summit set to take place in Skopje on Monday and Tuesday, the European Union Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos, stated that the enlargement process is a transformative one—not only for the economy, but for society as a whole in the candidate countries seeking EU membership.

According to Commissioner Kos, all negotiation clusters with Albania are expected to be opened by the end of September.

“In Albania’s case, all negotiation clusters will be opened by the end of September. There is strong public support for the EU in Albania, and the government in Tirana is demonstrating a firm commitment to implementing integration reforms. The EU can easily accommodate the accession of Montenegro and Albania. However, further enlargements will require reforms within the EU itself, particularly regarding the current unanimity-based decision-making process. A review to potentially move away from unanimous voting on enlargement issues is already underway and is expected to conclude in the autumn,” she explained.

Commissioner Kos reaffirmed that Montenegro and Albania could become EU member states even before 2030.