CITIZENS’ PERCEPTION ON ALBANIA’S EU INTEGRATION PROCESS: WILL THE BELIEF THAT THE SUN RISES FROM THE WEST PREVAIL? Gentiola Madhi “Here it comes this blessed day, born from the west…” — Why, Naim Frashëri 1. INTRODUCTION Albania masters a clear strategic vocation and cross-party commitment to join the European Union. The accession perspective granted by the Thessaloniki Summit back in 2003 is considered the major catalyst for the advancement of the reform agenda and democratization of the country. Although the pace of accession has been marred by several hiccups over the years, public support for the process remains(roughly) above 90%. Despite the general support at the domestic level, the EU enlargement process involving Albania and the Western Balkans is currently stalling. As the Union stumbles through several internal crises and its leaders become prone to regurgitating old promises, the EU’s intentions of pushing the accession process forward have become more ambiguous. Enlargement has turned into a contentious policy within EU member states, which has led to a contradictory relationship relation between the EU on the one hand and the membership-seeking countries on the other. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020 seems to have set the enlargement policy adrift, posing questions of the Union’s credibility and hindering efforts for further democratization in the region. As membership seems'out of reach' for almost all the Balkan countries, Albania finds itself divided between domestic reform struggles and a certain‘waiting fatigue’. It has been five years since the country embarked upon a deep and comprehensive judicial reform – 4