The EU commissioner, Johannes Hahn, said he very much regrets the parliamentary boycott announced by the opposition in Albania.
“The political debate should not take place outside, but inside the parliament. Cooperation of government and opposition is crucial for the country’s ambition to join the European Union,” the EU commissioner for enlargement negotiations said.
The statement comes days after the Democratic Party led opposition said it will boycott the parliament until a caretaker government comes in charge as a guarantor for the free and fair elections in the country.
Hahn said “it is of utmost importance to maintain parliamentary continuity in a time where substantial reforms are on the agenda of the parliament, such as the setting up of the vetting bodies in the framework of the justice reform and the electoral reform including the follow-up of the OSCE/ODIHR election observation recommendations which are essential for ensuring free and fair elections later this year.”
He warned that these reforms are crucial for Albania to move forward on its EU integration path./tvklan.al
