The European Union does not intervene in bilateral disagreements, as it trusts the ability of the parties involved, especially when those parties are EU member states and the states that will be part of it, to resolve the issue in a way that brings reciprocal benefits by applying principles and rules, stated the spokesperson for the European Commission, Peter Stano.
This comes after the comment by journalist Joulia Velissaratou, according to whom the Greek Government had made it clear that it would block Albania’s path to the EU because the newly elected mayor of Himara, Fredi Beleri, was still in prison, as reported by OpenNews.Gr.
“In this case, the law applies. The law must be respected, and if there are doubts, EU member states and also states like Albania possess the instruments and means to provide solutions to such problems or disagreements so as not to create unnecessary disputes in bilateral relations and not to raise bilateral issues to the union level, such as in the accession process,” emphasized Stano.
Meanwhile, diplomatic sources from Brussels reaffirmed to Kathimerini on Tuesday Greece’s stance that it will not consent to Albania’s EU accession process without progress on the issue of the elected mayor of Himara, Fredi Beleri.
The Greek position, communicated to the Albanian side, emphasizes a clear move towards restoring the political will of Himara’s electorate. The matter is deemed a political-administrative decision, not a judicial independence issue. Greece seeks the elected mayor’s permission to be sworn in and exercise political rights.
The EU General Affairs Council discussed enlargement issues on Tuesday, including the potential decoupling of Albania’s accession from North Macedonia’s. EU leaders, in their Summit draft conclusions, reiterated commitment to Balkan integration, urging an expedited accession process. Bosnia and Herzegovina negotiations will commence upon sufficiently meeting the criteria, as instructed in the draft conclusions.
On Monday, Beleri’s request for a special permission to be sworn in as mayor was rejected by the Albanian court of appeal.
Beleri has been detained since May for alleged vote buying, after being elected mayor of the predominantly ethnic-Greek city of Himara in Albania./euronews.al
