Abstract This paper concentrates on the theory of democracy promotion and analyzes the case of Albania since the beginning of the 1990s until the recent developments. We start by giving some information on the background of the communist past in political, economic and social spheres, with the assumption that the characteristics of the authoritarian regime should have an impact upon the democratization strategy of the promoter. In the literature, there is a debate on whether democracy should be promoted at the level of political parties and politically oriented civil society groups or transparency and accountability should be targeted as essential factors of national development. Albania experienced both strategies. Firstly, United States was the major external actor that initiated and supported the democratization process in Albania. Then the EU followed with the policy framework of Stabilization and Association Process (SAP) that offered a commitment by the organization to necessary political, financial and personal resources to Balkan countries to complete the fulfillment of democratic principles required for membership. As a conclusion, the external assistance helped advance the level of democracy in the country, however remaining deficiencies show that the democracy promoters should support institutions that embrace democracy as an essential value. Key Words: Democracy, democratization, democracy promotion, external assistance, Albania.

Abstract This paper looks at the theory of democracy promotion and analyzes the case of Albania since the beginning of the 1990s until the recent developments. We start by giving some information on the background of the communist past in political, economic and social spheres, with the assumption that the characteristics of the authoritarian regime should have an impact upon the democratization strategy of the promoter. In the literature, there is a debate on whether democracy should be promoted at the level of political parties and politically oriented civil society groups or transparency and accountability should be targeted as essential factors of national development. Albania experienced both strategies. Firstly, United States was the major external actor that initiated and supported the democratization process in Albania. Then the EU followed with the policy the framework of Stabilization and Association Process (SAP) that offered a commitment by the organization to necessary political , financial and personal resources to Balkan countries to complete the fulfillment of democratic principles required for membership. As a conclusion, the external assistance helped advance the level of democracy in the country, however remaining deficiencies show that the democracy promoters should support institutions that embrace democracy as a value rather than bringing it in as a good. Key Words: Democracy, democratization, democracy promotion, extarnal assistance, Albania.