Krivokapić, Varhelyi: Continued reforms will lead to Montenegro's membership in the EU

Prime Minister Zdravko Krivokapić met today with European Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Olivér Várhelyi in Brussels. The officials agreed that continued reforms and work on strengthening institutions will lead to Montenegro's membership in the EU.

We do not have and are not looking for an alternative to the European Union. It is possible that the lack of progress in certain segments of the accession process has left room for different, ill-intentioned interpretations. However, it should be taken into account that Montenegro has gone through a process of democratic transition in a short period of time, and consequently changed part of the personnel structure for conducting negotiations and started the process of reforms on several tracks. All this was necessary in order for us to take a stable course towards fulfilling the preconditions and achieving internal readiness for EU membership, the Prime Minister said.

European Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Olivér Várhelyi expressed satisfaction with the meeting with the Prime Minister of Montenegro and said that the frequency of contacts at the highest level is a strong confirmation of Montenegro's commitment to become the next member of the European Union. He stressed the importance of intensifying the integration process and the readiness of the European Union to provide technical support to Montenegro.

In the context of the European Union's annual report for Montenegro, the Prime Minister said that the Government was focused on meeting the provisional benchmarks for Chapter 23 and Chapter 24, and expressed the expectation that Montenegro would complete the remaining tasks by the end of the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union (June 2022).

During the meeting, PM Krivokapić informed the European Commissioner about the economic recovery and investment programmes "Europe Now!" and "Montenegro Now!". The officials agreed that maintaining good neighbourly relations is key to preserving stability and further integration of the Western Balkans into the EU.