Albanian President Bamir Topi has stated that European integration is a priority for Albania although Tirana has not yet received a status of candidate country for EU membership.

In its latest report on Albania, the European Commission wrote that despite its partial progress, Albania would not be given the status of applicant country because of the grave political crisis and the difficult work of the parliament due to the fact that the two largest political parties in the country, the now ruling Democratic party and the main opposition Socialist Party are unable to achieve a dialogue between each other for a long time.

The EC report recommends that Albania should try to start a political dialogue between political parties, to reinforce the rule of law, to accelerate reforms in the justice system and election code and introduce efficient measures against corruption and organized crime.