Krivokapić, Foster: UK support in border management is very important for Montenegro

Prime Minister Zdravko Krivokapić, during the first day of his working visit to the United Kingdom, met with Minister for Future Borders and Immigration Kevin Foster.

Prime Minister Krivokapić expressed satisfaction with the cooperation between the two countries in the field of internal affairs, and welcomed the recent signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Montenegrin Police Directorate and the Secretary of State for the Home Department on joint cooperation, knowledge improvement and skills development related to border management of Montenegro, in the field of investigation and detection of crimes in the tax and customs sectors, cross-border crime, including cigarette smuggling, trafficking in human beings and weapons.

Our border is not well secured and as such is suitable for various types of crime. That is something we have to solve and where your support means a lot to us, the Prime Minister said.

PM Krivokapić especially emphasised the importance of cooperation with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, which is focused on cigarette smuggling investigations, emphasising that significant results have been achieved in this field.

Prime Minister Krivokapić said that the Government is working to make Montenegro a country of justice whose action must be felt at all social levels, because only in this way can legal security be achieved for all its citizens and the state, which is a reliable and stable factor of regional cooperation and international partnership.

Our priority is the rule of law and the fight against organised crime and corruption, and we will not give up on that, the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister also pointed out that, as partners in NATO, we would appreciate if the United Kingdom would facilitate the procedure for obtaining visas for the entry of Montenegrin citizens into the UK.

Minister Kevin Foster said that the visit of the Montenegrin delegation is historic and pointed out that he was familiar with the challenges faced by the state authorities and Montenegro, because no system is immune to organised crime, smuggling of illegal goods, illegal financing.

Our desire is to provide you with expert support so that our teams with extensive experience in cross-border issues can help you. We are willing to do the same when it comes to breaking up networks of illegal financing and organised economic crime, because we share similar priorities. Whoever poses a threat to you, indirectly poses a threat to us and the entire system of global security and safety, said Minister Foster. 

Head of the National Security Agency of Montenegro Dejan Vukšić also attended the meeting.