AFET public hearing on Western Balkans' frontrunners in Brussels; draft study on EU enlargement lessons presented today

AFET public hearing on Western Balkans’ frontrunners in Brussels; draft study on EU enlargement lessons presented today

Hearing and presentation of a draft study on Western Balkans’ frontrunners | Upcoming events | Events | Think Tank | European Parliament

10-09-2026 09:30 Hearing and presentation of a draft study on Western Balkans’ frontrunners

On Thursday 10 September 2026, the Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET) will hold a public hearing on “Western Balkans’ frontrunners: Lessons learnt from Albania and Montenegro and sustaining the enlargement process” from 09:30 – 11:00 in Brussels (SPAAK 3C50).

The aim of the hearing is to reflect on the EU enlargement process in the Western Balkans, drawing on the experiences of Albania and Montenegro as the two most advanced accession countries and identifying lessons for the future. A study on the same topic will also be presented during this hearing.

Matteo Bonomi, Senior Fellow in the European Union (EU) Politics and Institutions programme at the Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI), presenting a study on ‘Sustaining EU Enlargement – Lessons from Albania and Montenegro, the Western Balkans’ Frontrunners’

Krisela Hackaj, Executive Director of the Cooperation and Development Institute, Albania