2024-04-27 09:34:18
For several months, the logo of the “College of Europe” has been displayed inside the pyramid of Tirana, formerly a museum of the communist dictator Enver Hoxha, and today a symbol of the transformation of Albania. The European higher education establishment founded in 1949 is preparing to open its third campus in the Albanian capital, after those in Bruges in Belgium and Natolin in Poland.
Classes are scheduled to start in September. “It’s a great opportunity for us. Future employees of European institutions will be trained here and will be ambassadors of Albania in the world, comments, delighted, the deputy mayor of Tirana, Frida Pashako. Most of my fellow citizens already feel totally European. »
Albania has aligned itself with Europe
A candidate for integration into the European Union for almost ten years, Albania is eager to join the club of Twenty-Seven. Under pressure from Brussels and Washington, the government of socialist Prime Minister Edi Rama began in 2016 a complete overhaul of its judicial system, plagued by corruption. It was the biggest obstacle on the way to Europe.
Since then, some 800 Albanian judges and prosecutors have undergone a thorough vetting process, overseen by international representatives. Nearly half of them had to leave office. Tirana also demonstrates cooperation in matters of foreign policy. The country has been a member of NATO since 2009 and after Russian aggression against Ukraine, it quickly aligned itself with Brussels by introducing sanctions against Moscow. In 2022, the European Council rewarded Tirana by giving the green light to the opening of accession negotiations.
“Today, security and defense policies are becoming a priority”
“More than 90% of Albanians support European integration, but the road to the EU has been slow. Enlargement is only being relaunched today out of fear of Russia and a possible re-election of Donald Trump, laments Albanian researcher Çelik Rruplli. Until now, the EU’s demands were focused on real reforms in terms of the rule of law, the fight against corruption… Today, although these issues remain important, security and defense policies are becoming a priority. »
In power since 2013, Edi Rama is accused by his critics of authoritarianism and links to organized crime, while senior officials in his government (including a former interior minister) have been implicated in drug cases . Oppressed by cronyism and corruption, tired of waiting for integration into the EU, many Albanians left the country… for the EU. “A third of the Albanian population already lives in the European Union! “, s’exclame Steel Rruplli.
In a café in the center of Tirana, Sabina, 20, picks up the cups of coffee from her tray. This psychology student from Vlorë hopes that her country will join the European Union in the next five years. “This will open a little the mentality of the Albanians, which today is rather closed,” she comments. Entry into the EU will also bring “great economic and cultural benefits for Albania”but in the meantime, Sabina does not hide her desire to also go abroad.
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