EU and Moldova open negotiations on external relations cluster
The EU and the Republic of Moldova opened negotiations on the so-called external relations cluster in the accession process. The move was announced as another step in Moldova's accession path under the Irish presidency. Thomas Byrne, Minister of State for European affairs and defence of Ireland, said the opening came one month after Cluster 1 was opened and showed the importance placed on the enlargement agenda. He described Moldova as a reliable partner for the Union and said the country had made remarkable progress since securing candidate status. Cluster 6, "External relations," contains two negotiating chapters. The EU said it... [Continue Reading]
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Albania and EU provisionally close three accession chapters
Albania and the European Union provisionally closed the first negotiating chapters in Albania's accession talks at the ninth meeting of the Accession Conference with Albania. The chapters closed were science and research, education and culture, and external relations. The closure followed the fulfilment of rule of law benchmarks in May, which allowed Albania set to begin closing its first three negotiating chapters. Thomas Byrne, Ireland's Minister of State for European affairs and defence, said the development showed Albania's and the EU's commitment to continue the country's European integration process, and urged Albania to stay the course on core reforms in... [Continue Reading]

