The European Union opened the final remaining cluster of accession negotiations with Albania on November 17, a step officials said reflects the renewed momentum behind enlargement and the country’s progress toward eventual membership.

Albania has accelerated its EU accession process over the past year, amid a broader push by Brussels to reinvigorate enlargement following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. EU officials have signalled that Western Balkan accession is strategically important for regional stability and the bloc’s geopolitical influence.

Prime Minister Edi Rama highlighted the speeding up of the process, telling a press conference: "Who would have thought that we would be here today, opening a whole bunch of chapters. Just a short while ago it seemed impossible and we were at the point where we were getting used to the setbacks and those punches in the stomach, but I believe that this whole journey made us stronger," a government statement said. 

The seventh Accession Conference with Albania launched talks on Cluster 5: resources, agriculture and cohesion, which covers agriculture, fisheries, food safety and cohesion policy. It is the last of six thematic clusters under the EU’s revised accession methodology.

“Enlargement is a geopolitical necessity for the EU, and a priority for the Danish presidency,” said Denmark’s Minister for European Affairs Marie Bjerre, who chaired the meeting, according to a European Commission statement. “Today’s step demonstrates Albania’s commitment to advancing on its path toward membership once the necessary reforms are complete.”

The move follows the opening of previous clusters between October 2024 and September 2025, including negotiations on the rule-of-law-focused Fundamentals cluster, market access, economic competitiveness, external relations and the green transition.

Under the negotiation framework, the EU will continue monitoring Albania’s progress in aligning with the bloc’s legislation and standards. Brussels also set benchmarks for the provisional closure of the chapters within Cluster 5, with the conference expected to return to the file at a later stage.

Albania is expected to conclude membership talks by the end of 2027, with a view to joining the EU by 2030, according to diplomatic officials familiar with the timeline.

Rama commented that the recent progress reflected years of institutional reform.

“What Albania and the Albanians win in this process is something beyond the formal accession itself,” Rama said at a press conference in Tirana, Euronews Albania reported. “We win a country that functions based on institutions, on the rule of law, on all the standards and principles that make EU countries so admirable.”

In a typically outspoken remark, he added: “There is no escape from Albania. Better they get us in because we’ll stalk them to the end.”

The Fundamentals cluster will remain open until the end of negotiations, and progress in rule-of-law reforms will continue to determine overall accession pace, EU officials said.