Tirana, a city more accustomed to café chatter than the clatter of diplomatic motorcades, will on Thursday become the epicentre of Europe’s geopolitical discourse as it hosts the Sixth European Political Community Summit.
More than 40 heads of state and government are expected to descend on the Albanian capital for what is being hailed as a pivotal moment for the continent’s security, economic resilience, and democratic cohesion. The choice of Albania—a non-EU nation with ambitions to join the bloc—serves both symbolic and strategic ends. It signals a willingness by Europe’s established powers to embrace their Balkan neighbours and reaffirms the region’s importance at a time of renewed instability on the continent’s periphery.
Launched in 2022 in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the European Political Community (EPC) was designed as a broader forum for countries both inside and outside the European Union to discuss common challenges. Since then, it has grown into a key instrument of soft power—one that provides a platform for political alignment without the bureaucratic burdens of full EU membership.
This week’s summit, however, is expected to be anything but soft.
War, Warnings, and Western Resolve
Top of the agenda is the ongoing war in Ukraine. With Russian forces pushing hard in the Donbas and Kyiv clamouring for more military aid, EPC leaders will use the summit to reaffirm their support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and discuss new avenues of defence coordination. While the EPC does not possess decision-making authority, its role as a political bellwether has grown substantially.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to call for a “European security compact”—a flexible framework for defence collaboration among EPC members, NATO allies, and strategic partners like Ukraine and Moldova.
“The threat is not theoretical. It is marching across borders and flattening cities,” said a senior British official ahead of the summit. “We cannot afford European complacency.”
French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz are also expected to push for deeper cooperation on energy infrastructure and cybersecurity, both of which have become flashpoints in the wake of the war.
The Balkan Moment
Albania’s hosting of the summit is more than logistical convenience. It is a declaration that the Western Balkans—long a patchwork of ethnic tensions, democratic frailty, and Russian interference—are an integral part of Europe’s future.
For Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, the event is a diplomatic coronation of sorts. Tirana, freshly spruced and tightly guarded, has been preparing for weeks. Statues have been polished, flags hoisted, and potholes—those enduring features of Balkan life—finally filled.
Rama is expected to use the occasion to lobby hard for faster accession talks, not just for Albania but for the entire region. “We do not want to be a buffer zone,” he said recently, “but a bridge. Europe’s fate passes through the Balkans.”
His appeal may find sympathetic ears. The war in Ukraine has revived EU enlargement as a tool of strategic containment, not merely administrative expansion. Countries like Moldova, Georgia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina—once relegated to the diplomatic slow lane—are now seen as frontline states in the ideological contest between democracy and autocracy.
A Broader Vision, or a Talk Shop?
Critics of the EPC argue that its lack of formal powers and binding mechanisms limits its effectiveness. It cannot pass laws, enforce sanctions, or mobilise troops. But supporters insist that its value lies in its flexibility and inclusivity.
“The EPC is not a second EU. It is a political agora,” said one European diplomat. “And in an age of geopolitical disorder, talking—regularly and strategically—is no small thing.”
Indeed, the summit will include leaders from countries as varied as Norway and Serbia, Iceland and Azerbaijan, Turkey and Ukraine. This eclecticism, while potentially unwieldy, offers a unique chance to align interests across borders, ideologies, and alliances.
On the economic front, leaders will discuss strategies to reduce dependency on foreign energy—particularly Russian gas—and to secure critical supply chains. Proposals for greater investment in green technology and digital infrastructure will also feature prominently, particularly as Europe races to stay competitive with China and the United States.
Britain’s Quiet Return?
While Brexit once cast Britain as the outsider at such continental gatherings, the EPC has given London a renewed platform to shape European affairs—without the baggage of Brussels. British officials have privately described the summit as an opportunity to “lead from outside,” particularly on security and energy resilience.
As the West faces down a resurgent Russia, a volatile Middle East, and rising authoritarianism globally, the stakes in Tirana are considerable. Whether the EPC can evolve into a permanent fixture of Europe’s strategic architecture remains to be seen.
But one thing is clear: from the boulevards of Tirana to the corridors of Brussels, the question is no longer whether Europe will act, but whether it will act together.
Main Image: By Uviein – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=162509289
