Prime Minister Edi Rama reacted after the clash of positions between the Council of Europe and the European Commission, one day after the statement of the President of the Council of Europe, Charles Michel, who said that by 2030, the EU should be ready to accept members of young people in the community.
According to Rama, despite the fact that the destination is very far and the journey very rough, the European Union bus is certain that it will never crash.
Ironically, Rama also talks again about the "Russian plane" (referring to the Prigozhin case) that crashed, saying that an EU bus, even if there are no seats at the moment, is much safer .
"Yes of course, that's why a bus can never become a plane... But believe me, in the current state of affairs, staying on an EU bus even without a seat is safer than sitting on a Russian plane, because the journey it may be too slow and our destination too far, but one thing is as certain as death: This bus will never crash in the EU", he wrote on the X platform (former Twitter), where he also shared a media article international Politico, which reflects the disagreement within the EU.
Yeah of course, that's why the bus can never become a plane... Anyway trust me, at the present status of affairs standing in the EU bus even without a seat is safer then sitting in a Russian plane, because the trip may be too slow and our destination too far, but one thing is sure...
— Edi Rama (@ediramaal) August 29, 2023
Clash in the EU
The proposal of the president of the European Council, Charles Michel, to set the year 2030 as the deadline, when the European Union and the countries of the Western Balkans should be ready for enlargement, was not met with enthusiasm in the European Commission.
While admitting that enlargement is a political priority, Dana Spinant, spokesperson for the bloc's executive body, emphasized that the Commission is not focused on timelines, but on the assistance offered to candidate countries to advance in the enlargement process.
She emphasized that the process should remain merit-based and that candidates should move in line with their success in fulfilling the conditions.
"We have always said that enlargement is a process based on merit, which means that a candidate must join the bloc when he is ready. We are not focused on the timeline, but on close cooperation with the candidate countries to prepare them to join the bloc. We are focused on reforms, investments, or the transformation of the economies of these countries."
The spokeswoman of the European Commission reiterated that success in enlargement requires both the candidates and the EU to be ready. She has warned that EU leaders will discuss enlargement at the Granada summit in Spain.
Spinat said that "he is not aware if there were contacts between Charles Michel and Ursula von der Leyen on this matter", before the president of the European Council came out with his proposal.
During the speech at the Bled Strategic Forum, Mishel repeated several times that from now on the candidate countries should be referred to as "future members of the EU".