The Committee on International Relations of the Montenegrin Parliament has supported the government’s proposal to appoint Bernard Çobaj and Nebojsha Gjoković as ambassadors to Kosovo and Serbia.
With this decision, after four years, the ambassadorial positions in Pristina and Belgrade will be filled again.
The future ambassador to Belgrade received unanimous support, while the ambassador to Pristina did not receive votes from pro-Russian party deputies Andrija Mandić and Milan Knežević, who do not recognize Kosovo’s independence.
Montenegro’s previous ambassador to Pristina, Ferhat Dinoshi, left his post in 2020 after meeting the conditions for retirement. Meanwhile, the previous ambassador to Belgrade, Tarzan Milošević, left his position following the change of power in Montenegro in 2020. He was a member of the Democratic Party of Socialists, led by former president Milo Đukanović.
Who Are the Proposed Ambassadors?
The future ambassador to Kosovo, Çobaj, was recently the chargé d’affaires at the Montenegrin embassy in Pristina.
“The Embassy of Montenegro has been recognized as one of the most visible embassies in Kosovo. This is mainly thanks to cultural diplomacy,” said Çobaj.
He described the relationship between the two states as friendly neighbors oriented toward a European future.
Before entering Montenegrin diplomacy, Çobaj worked for many years at the U.S. Embassy in Podgorica. He is not a member of any political party.
Meanwhile, the future ambassador to Serbia is a representative of the New Democratic Initiative led by Andrija Mandić.
In addition to working in the Association of Banks, he has served for many years on the Board of Directors of Montenegro’s Airport Authority and the Central Bank of Montenegro.
Speaking about Montenegro-Serbia relations, Gjoković stated that they “have not had the necessary dynamics for neighboring and brotherly states” and that improving these relations is also driven by their shared goal of joining the European Union.
Regarding Serbia’s EU accession process, he noted that “resolving the Kosovo issue remains the main challenge, along with misalignment with the EU’s foreign policy, particularly regarding sanctions against Russia.”
