FORMAL SESSION OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE RMNE ON THE OCCASSION OF THE SIGNING THE STABILIZATION AND ASSOCIATION AGREEMENT BETWEEN EUROPEAN COMMUNITY AND ITS MEMBER STATES, OF THE ONE PART, AND REPUBLIC OF MONTENEGRO, OF THE OTHER PART

Esteemed citizens,

Respected colleagues,

Media representatives,

Today we held the special session of the Government of the Republic of Montenegro, in order to, also in this way, emphasize the huge importance of the formal act of the signing the Stabilization and Association Agreement between EU Member States and Montenegro, which took place yesterday in Luxembourg.



Regular meeting of the EU Council of Ministers for general affairs and external relations, held on 15 October 2007, represents for Montenegro special day and event, which symbolically concluded the first phase of the European Integration process and established the first, comprehensive contracted relation between our country and Union.



Esteemed citizens,

As I informed my colleagues on todays formal session of the Government, and I want to emphasize now as well, it represented a splendid honor and special pleasure for me to, on behalf of our country, Montenegro, sign the Stabilization and Association Agreement, together with 27 EU Member States representatives.





By signing of the Agreement, a special international honor was paid to our country, as the youngest independent and internationally recognized state, and at the same time the youngest European country recognition and admission of its total state capacity, democratic maturity, economic stability and clear European perspective.



Montenegro, our country, has always been a part of the European political, cultural, and economic territory. Today, Montenegro shares the goals, values and principles of the EU. In addition to this, for Montenegro, gradual integration into the EU is nothing more than taking of the deserved position in the European family of democratic countries. And by signing of our Agreement yesterday in Luxembourg, all EU Member States confirmed this.



By signing of the Agreement, after more than 17 months of demanded negotiating process, act of initiating, and 7 months of translation challenges, we confirmed and proved that we are ready to assume full responsibility for future development of the country and realization of its strategic goal, which is a comprehensive reform through dynamic EU accession process.



Stabilization and Association Agreement between Montenegro and EU symbolizes a new generation of the agreements with countries from Region, in which all binding accession criteria have been respected, but at the same time, it projects that Montenegro, as a country, is ready and capable to implement all Agreement provisions in period not longer than 5 years. It is important to point out that it is, until now, the shortest offered deadline for implementation of this kind of treaty, which was acceptable for both treaty parties.



At the same time it means that there is real estimation that Montenegro can achieve it. SAA does not mean only trade liberalization. It gradually strengthen the most various relations between economic subjects of the parties, which lead to very positive influence on: the mutual trade level, the investment volume from the EU into Montenegro, so as the new projects which open the new working places in the country.



Furthermore, it means that real estimation is that Montenegro will, in future five years, dynamically strengthen its administrative capacities, in order to gradually adopt all European standards (adopting the new laws, strengthening institution and policy). In other words, through stabilization and association process, Montenegro will prove that it has so-called absorption capacity to conduct successfully process and gradually assume obligations of the future full membership.



At the same time, the other party, European Union, by defining the new Reform Agreement, internal consolidation and institutional reform, shows and proves that it will continue with strengthening of the integration capacity, to be ready, the moment when Montenegro is ready for accession, to accept Montenegro.



Having in mind that goal, Stabilization and Association Agreement has specific weight and it represents for Montenegro event of historical importance and its future democratic and economic development.



Association process and very soon, after gaining the candidate country status, EU accession process, is complex process of comprehensive changes of our society, where Montenegro must avoid the risk of so-called implementation chasm of the newly-adopted laws and newly-established institutions. It takes good organization of all our available resources, real projection of expectations, so as detailed planning of what is really possible to realize. We will achieve this through further strengthening of our structures for European Integration, so as through preparation of National Program for Integration of Montenegro to the EU.



As until now, the Government of the Republic of Montenegro, in all its activities in the framework of the EU Integration process, will continue with building and strengthening of the image of credible partner to the European Union serious and responsible party which fulfill all the obligations assumed, with the strong support from the very EU.



Not underestimating the volume of the work standing in front of us, however, already now we can say that European perspective of Montenegro, by signing of the SAA, is institutionally established.



The future has begun. And we are ready to salute and meet it.