Political stalemate in Albania must be resolved: EU

(TIRANA) - The political stalemate that has blocked Albania's path towards European Union integration must be resolved, EU enlargement commissioner Stefan Fuele said here Wednesday.

"The political stalemate constitutes a serious obstacle to the fulfilment of the political criteria and it is holding back important reforms," Fuele said after the meeting with Albania's Prime Minister Sali Berisha in Tirana.

He warned that "if no solution is found, the (European) Commission will not be able to make a positive assessment for Albania in our next progress report."

Albania has been mired in political crisis since disputed elections in June 2009, the longest the Balkan country has seen in its post communist democracy.

The opposition has never recognised Berisha's victory at the polls, accusing him of committing fraud, thus blocking legislation and reforms in the parliament.

Berisha in turn has accused opposition leader and mayor of Tirana Edi Rama of having tried to use a January 21 rally to launch a coup, a charge Rama has dismissed. Four people were killed at the rally.

Fuele said the stalemate "must be resolved as it is a shared responsibility" and warned that "signals of willingness to compromise are needed."

"We encourage both sides to promote a constructive dialogue and to improve the functioning of parliament," Fuele said.

Fuelle's visit came ahead of local elections due to be held on May 8, seen by the international officials as a test of Albania's maturity for progress towards European Union integration.

Ever since the fall of the communist regime in the early 1990s, elections in Albania have been marred by fraud or hotly disputed.

Fuelle warned that Albania "cannot miss the opportunity" to conduct elections in line with international standards

The opposition also blames the government over its failure to convince the European Union to agree on the country's candidate status.

In December, Albania' s request for EU candidate status was rejected.

Instead, Brussels urged Tirana to step up its fight against corruption and also expressed concern about the political crisis.