Tension in the wake of 8 May mayoral elections (see 'Background'), closely watched by the European Union, prompted Barroso to cancel his trip to Albania, part of a wider Balkan tour.
The latest developments appear to be a sad repeat of the situation following national elections held on 28 June 2009, which saw the opposition socialists refuse to accept the results and accuse the government of corruption and vote fraud (see EurActiv LinksDossier on EU-Albania relations).
High-ranking Commission officials told EurActiv that they they were losing patience with Albania and that the country was gambling with its historic chance to chart a course towards EU membership.
Natasha Butler, spokesperson for Enlargement Commissioner Štefan Füle, admitted that a "lack of political maturity" had characterised recent developments in the Western Balkans, citing Albania but also Kosovo and Macedonia.
In Kosovo, several officials have openly voiced anti-European messages, in particular against EU law enforcement mission EULEX. In Macedonia, Albanian parties recently questioned the Ohrid Agreement, on the basis of which the international community saved the small landlocked country from violence and chaos in 2001.
Officially, spokespersons said that Barroso would visit the country when the political climate was more congenial to discussing EU matters.
Asked by EurActiv to reveal whether Barroso had abruptly cancelled a visit on other occasions, his spokesperson Pia Ahrenkilde Hansen said she could not recall such a case.
EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton on Wednesday urged politicians in Albania to remain calm and warned them "not to put lives at risk".
After an opposition party called for an uprising amid an election row, Ashton said that a narrow poll result in mayoral elections in the capital, Tirana, meant "both sides need to reach out, overcome differences and find solutions".
"Developments today have shown the fragility of the political situation," she added in a statement.
