Spain’s Support for Montenegro to Soon Become a Full Member of the EU

Through efficient reforms and visible results, Montenegro continuously confirms its commitment to the process of accession to the European Union. The Kingdom of Spain will continue to provide strong support so that our country soon becomes a full member, it was stated during the working visit of the Minister of European Affairs, Maida Gorčević, to the Kingdom of Spain.

During her visit to Madrid, Minister Gorčević met with Fernando Sampedro, Secretary of State for the EU at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as with Alberto Fabro, President of the Joint Committee for the EU in the Congress, and representatives of that body.

Gorčević expressed gratitude for Spain’s political support for Montenegro’s European path and emphasized that the consistent progress Montenegro is achieving in all negotiating chapters strengthens the social consensus regarding the European future of our country.

“There is no doubt about Montenegro’s political commitment to EU membership. We are determined to complete this historic task within the deadlines we have defined together with the European Commission. Therefore, the continuous support of our European partners is important to us, along with the acceleration of administrative and technical procedures, so that Montenegro can complete the negotiation process by the end of the year and join the EU in 2028 as the 28th full member,” said Minister Gorčević.

The Secretary of State for the EU at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Fernando Sampedro, welcomed Montenegro’s commitment to fulfilling European obligations and conveyed Spain’s full support for our country to complete the remaining tasks within the agreed deadlines.

“This year Spain marks 40 years of membership in the European Union, which gives us an additional perspective on the transformative power of the European project. For this reason, we strongly support the principle that candidate countries which meet all membership criteria and fully align with the EU acquis should also become full members of the Union. We are in a challenging moment for Europe, but at the same time in a crucial moment for enlargement policy. The progress Montenegro is making and its future membership send a strong message that the enlargement process is credible and that the European Union remains committed to the unification of the European continent,” said Sampedro.

In that context, views were exchanged on modalities of cooperation and Spain’s expert support to Montenegro, based on the recently signed Memorandum of Understanding on support for the European integration process, which articulates the interest in long-term cooperation between the two countries. The interlocutors defined the areas and negotiating chapters in which Spain has relevant expertise, and which are Montenegro’s priorities for accession to the EU.

The President of the Joint Committee for the EU in the Congress, Alberto Fabro, welcomed the results Montenegro is achieving, which make it the most advanced candidate for EU membership, as well as the fact that our country conducts a constructive regional policy and is fully aligned with the common foreign and security policy.

He expressed confidence that Montenegro will successfully complete the negotiation process and soon join the EU as an equal member. He emphasized that this will confirm that the European Union keeps its promises and will further strengthen the European perspective of the Western Balkan countries and other candidate states. Fabro announced that the Joint Committee for the EU will visit Montenegro during this year and stated that they are ready to provide all necessary support for our European path, emphasizing that enlargement policy is of strategic importance, because a larger Union also means a stronger and safer Europe.