Hahn: Albanians Suffer From Specific Image

European Union Commissioner Johannes Hahn tells Dee Welt quite that the year 2025 is only intended for Serbia-Montenegro's EU membership. For Albanians he says he suffers from their image of advancing towards it.

“Viti 2025 is just an indicator date, not guarantee. It obliges the Western Balkans, but also the EU to deal seriously with a membership that has been promised for years”, thus expresses in an interview the modern-day issue of German newspaper dealt with Welt 911, EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn.

Hahn further stresses, however, that the date mentioned “alone meets a hundred per cent of all the political, judicial state conditions and economic conditions could be included”. With the concrete prospect of enlargement in the region, there is a pressure to motivate.

Asked about dealing with unresolved border conflicts among Balkan states that want to join the EU, regarding Serbia and Kosovo Johannes Hahn says that “would like to become a member of Serbia, this country should link to Kosovo a normalisation with a binding judicial form. The agreement must be broad, final and binding in legal views”.

As for the moment the EU membership negotiations began with Albania and Macedonia, Hahn tells edge Weltʹse “European Commission will soon recommend member states likely by summer to start membership negotiations with Albania and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia... After all, it will be member states that will decide when to start membership talks”.

France, but Germany, above all, has huge reserves in Albania's case.

Albanians, of course, suffer under a certain image of”, Hahn says.

But Albania has done <x0); especially in the fight against organised crime”, Johannes Hahn concludes. /DW/