EP in last attempt to mediate Albania deal

KNUT PRIES AND AUGUSTIN PALOKAJ

Today @ 09:34 CET

A European Parliament initiative to overcome Albania's political crisis has failed to produce the hoped-for results and the two political factions involved have agreed to undertake one last-ditch attempt before moving to put on hold Albania's bid for EU membership, parliament sources have said.

The leaders of the EP's two largest groups, Joseph Daul of the centre-right EPP and Socialist chairman Martin Schulz, met Albania's Prime Minister Sali Berisha and opposition leader Edi Rama in May and gave them three weeks to sort out their political differences over last year's elections. The initiative was supported by the European Commission and member state foreign ministers but the time elapsed without a deal in sight.

The European Parliament is getting impatient with Albania (Photo: EUobserver.com)

Mr Daul is starting a visit to Tirana today (23 June) where he is set to meet both Mr Berisha and Mr Rama. Parliamentary sources said he would try to persuade the prime minister in particular to match concessions already made by Mr Rama.

Mr Rama's socialist party has boycotted the newly-elected parliament for almost two years asking for a recount of the vote. The demand was rejected by the government. Socialist MPs finally took up their parliamentary seats after the EU decided to get involved.

Mr Daul and Mr Schulz are said to agree with the European Commission that the brakes should be put on Albania's move towards EU membership if the two sides continued their feuding. "We would need to step up the pressure," one source said.....

http://waz.euobserver.com/887/30347