May 18 (SeeNews) - Albania's prime minister Edi Rama and Lulzim Basha, leader of main opposition Democratic Party (PD), have reached a deal to postpone general elections to June 25, according to a statement posted on the website of Rama's Socialist Party on Thursday.
Under the deal, Rama will carry on as prime minister but several ministers and deputy prime minister Niko Peleshi will be replaced by ministers nominated by the opposition in order to form a caretaker cabinet tasked with organising free and fair elections.
According to the statement, PD have agreed to register for the June 25 election and to go back to the parliament to vote in an extraordinary session on key justice reform legislation, on which Albania's progress towards EU membership hinges.
PD has until now refused to take part in the elections initially scheduled for June 18, claiming the coalition government led by Rama is unable to organise a free and fair vote and a caretaker government should be appointed to do the job.
PD and smaller opposition parties have been boycotting parliament sessions since February, thus blocking the justice reform whose implementation is one of the conditions Albania should meet to open EU membership talks. EU and US officials have visited the country several times in an effort to mediate a compromise between the government and the opposition.