Concrete Steps of Albania Towards the Approximation of National Legislation with the Acquis Communautaire: Is it Considered that the Copenhagen Criteria in this Sector is Fulfilled?

Laws are the foundations of a democratic state and their implementation becomes easier to serve to citizens if the state (in our case Albania) achieves the necessary drafting standards. Countries with the EU integration perspective should guarantee the fulfillment of these standards. In 1993, the European Council determined in its conclusions the Copenhagen Criteria. One of them is compliance with the EU acquis. This is a non-negotiable condition for membership, which means that national legislation should be harmonized with the right of the EU as a whole, before Albania joins EU. Being aware of this fact, as well as obligations under the SAA to align EU acquis, the Albanian Government has prepared a National Plan for European Integration as a long-term plan extended for the period from 2014 to 2020. It is a dynamic document that will evolve with passing the stages of the integration process. This article treats the EU primary legislation, secondary legislation, the jurisprudence of the European Justice Court, etc., also principles and methods of approach. The main purpose of this paper is to present the steps taken by Albanian Government in the process of harmonization of domestic legislation with the acquis. It is focused on national strategies, actions, trainings and evaluations of EU bodies.