The Unites States and the European Union on Friday called on Albania to hold free and fair elections to get itself closer to the west.

The US Embassy in Tirana said the upcoming elections, due on June 28, would be a test of the country's commitment to democracy.

The Czech Embassy, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, said the vote would show whether Albania was ready to move closer toward the bloc.

The United States and the EU made the call after a series of pre-election violence that has marred the election campaigning in the tiny western Balkan country.

A 34-year-old regional head of the country's Christian Democratic Party in the northern city of Shkodra was killed in a car bomb explosion on Thursday.

Last week, a political activist from the opposition Socialists shot and killed a supporter of the governing party. In early May, an opposition lawmaker was killed by unidentified gunmen.

Source: Xinhua