Prime Minister Edi Rama said today that Albania is preparing to close chapters in its European Union accession negotiations by the end of this year.

At a joint press conference with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Rama reaffirmed Albania’s commitment to meeting all its obligations under the EU integration process.

“President von der Leyen’s visit to Tirana and her delegation bring many positive developments for all our shared objectives,” Rama said.

He added, “I want to publicly reaffirm our firm commitment to moving forward with all the work required by a process that has now entered the chapter-closing phase. We are preparing to begin closing chapters soon, specifically before the end of this year.”

Meanwhile, Rama said Albania would continue intensive work next year on a significant number of chapters that it has already opened.

Rama also highlighted the Growth Plan. He said Albania had achieved several highly ambitious targets under the plan.

“The Growth Plan represents one of the innovations of her second term,” Rama said. “For the region, it has provided major support, not only financially but, above all, through what we now call gradual integration, without waiting until the end of the process for everything to happen.”

/a.c/