Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn noted that even though the parliamentary elections in Albania on 3 July were conducted "competitively overall", there were a number of shortcomings.
"These shortcomings point to areas where significant further work will be required by the Albanian authorities in preparing for future elections. Once the election process is completed, and its conduct has been fully examined, we will be in a position to draw conclusions, which we will take into account in our regular report this autumn," read a statement from Rehn.
The regular report will examine the country's overall democratic and reform progress to judge whether the Commission can recommend concluding a Stabilisation and Association Agreement with Albania, a first step which may lead to future EU membership.
The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) said that the election complied "only partially" with democratic norms.
Voter turnout was over 50%. The final result is expected on 5 July.
