The European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement, Oliver Várhelyi, said on Tuesday in Podgorica that Montenegro should seize the great opportunity and favorable moment to accelerate its European path, in order to revitalize the European Union enlargement process with accession.
Várhelyi made it clear in Montenegro that he came with a clear message.
“Montenegro is the most advanced candidate country in accession negotiations. We are all ready to close the interim standards, our goal is to take Montenegro to the next level,” Várhelyi stated.
During the meeting with the European Commissioner, Montenegro’s President Jakov Milatović emphasized the importance of full EU membership, which, as he said, “is a foreign policy goal and expectation of Montenegro, as a leader in the negotiation process, to become a full member of the EU by 2028”.
Montenegro’s Prime Minister Milojko Spajić also thanked Várhelyi for his support for the country. He wrote on the X platform (previously known as Twitter) that “with such encouragement, we will continue to work even harder on our path towards the EU”.
To close the remaining chapters of the negotiations, Montenegro needs to make progress in chapters 23 and 24, which deal with the rule of law and the fight against organized crime.
Montenegro was considered a frontrunner in the European Union accession process in the region and has opened all chapters in the accession negotiations.
However, as a result of the political and institutional crisis, since December 2021, Montenegro has not held an intergovernmental conference due to insufficient progress in the necessary reforms for the accession process.
