Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, and Charles Michel, the President of the European Council, hailed the inauguration as a move of great symbolic significance. They expressed optimism that the opening of the College of Europe’s campus in Albania is a precursor to the Western Balkans’ accession to the EU.
Michel emphasized that this is the newest campus of the College of Europe since 1992 when the second campus was launched in Poland. This comes at a time when the entirety of the Western Balkans is gearing up for a future within the EU, akin to the preparations of Central European countries in the 1990s. “This campus will bridge the region and the EU, fostering a shared European future. Its opening bears profound symbolic importance,” stated Michel.
Von der Leyen recalled that shortly after the inauguration of the Polish campus, Poland and other Central European nations joined the EU. She hopes that the Western Balkans will follow suit after the establishment of the College of Europe’s campus in Albania.
Besides the campuses in Tirana and Warsaw, the College of Europe also has a campus in Bruges, Belgium, which was the first to be opened.
