Albania meets the intermediate benchmarks of the core indicators group

The eighth meeting of the Accession Conference with Albania confirmed that Albania has, on the whole, met the interim criteria of the so-called Group 1: Foundations. This group covers, in particular, the functioning of democratic institutions, public administration reform, the rule of law and economic criteria.  

“The milestone reached today by Albania confirms the fulfilment of the intermediate objectives of the fundamental pillars group. It demonstrates the country’s commitment to continuing its progress towards EU accession and marks the start of a demanding phase focused on implementation, a solid track record and lasting results. Enlargement is a geopolitical necessity for the EU and a top priority for the Cypriot Presidency. It is a merit-based process, in which the reforms undertaken lead to concrete progress towards accession.” – Marilena Raouna, Deputy Minister for European Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus.

The meeting follows the opening of all negotiation chapters with Albania at the Accession Conferences held in 2024 and 2025, including the most recent one on ‘Resources, Agriculture and Cohesion’ on 17 November 2025. With this step, the EU and Albania will be in a position to begin closing the negotiation chapters.

Monitoring of progress in the alignment with and implementation ofthe acquiscommunautaire and relevant European standards will continue throughout the negotiations.

The EU has also establishedbenchmarksfor the provisional closure of the chapters belonging to Group 1. The Accession Conference will return to the subject of Group 1 at the appropriate time.

Background

Following the introduction of the revised methodology for accession negotiations in 2020, the negotiation chapters are divided into six thematic groups:

• Fundamentals
• Internal market
• Competitiveness and inclusive growth
• Green Deal and sustainable connectivity
• Resources, agriculture and cohesion
• External relations

Negotiations on the key issues cluster are the first to open and the last to close, and progress in this cluster will set the overall pace of the negotiations.

Further information: European Council.