Brussels (Brussels Morning) – Montenegrin President Milatović met EU Council President Michel in Brussels to discuss Montenegro’s EU membership ambitions, after political changes postponed Michel’s Montenegro visit. Milatović reaffirmed its commitment to joining the EU by 2028.
President Charles Michel welcomed President of Montenegro Jakov Milatović to Brussels on 2 June 2024. Montenegrin President Jakov Milatovic encountered European Council President Charles Michel in Brussels, rather than in Montenegro as originally intended. The reason for the shift, according to the Montenegrin president, was the adoption of a resolution on Jasenovac by the Montenegrin parliament.
The meeting pursued the postponement of President of EU Council Michel’s visit to Montenegro due to the recent political evolutions in the country.
In a statement from Milatovic’s office, the President of Montenegro expressed in a friendly and cordial discussion that “Montenegro must not miss the opportunity to soon become a full member of the European Union (EU) due to limited partisan actions, and stressed that EU membership is the country’s top foreign policy priority.”
How Does Montenegro Plan to Join the EU by 2028?
Milatovic repeated his commitment to the European agenda to push Montenegro to the 28th member of the EU by 2028. He also stressed that Montenegrin society almost entirely backs the country’s entry into the EU, which binds decision-makers to diligently work towards this goal.
According to the Press during the gathering, Charles Michel stated that Montenegro must stay on the European way and thanked Milatovic for his actions to make Montenegro the next EU member.
What Are Montenegro’s EU Membership Aspirations?
Montenegro is a prospective country to be a member of the EU. Its European perspective was reaffirmed by the EU Council in June 2006 after the recognition of the country’s sovereignty by the EU Member States. Since 2007, the EU has delivered around 1.2 Billion euro non-repayable contributions directly to Montenegro. In addition, Montenegro has profited from a wide range of regional programmes for the Western Balkans.
On 15 October 2007, Montenegro marked a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) and an Interim Agreement on business and trade-related issues. The latter entered into force on 1 January 2008 while the SAA entered into force on 1 May 2010. By the act of marking the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, Montenegro formally agreed to an alliance with the European Community and its Member States, thereby bearing responsibility for its European future.
In 2008, the new nation applied for EU membership. In 2010, the Commission allocated a
favourable opinion on Montenegro’s application, identifying 7 critical priorities that would need to be managed for negotiations to begin, and the Council gave its candidate status. In December 2011, the Council undertook the accession process to open negotiations in June 2012.
The accession talks with Montenegro began on 29 June 2012. After eight years of accession negotiations, all 33 filtered chapters have been extended, of which 3 are provisionally shut.
