EU justice officials commend Montenegro's progress

High EU justice officials have commended Montenegro’s progress in judicial reform, strengthening of the rule of law, judicial efficiency, regional cooperation, fight against organised crime, and the implementation of the visa liberalisation process.

Justice Minister Miras Radovic met in Brussels on Monday with President of the European Court of Justice Vassilios Skouris, EU Commissioner for Home Affaris Cecilia Malmstrom and Director General for Justice and Home Affairs at the Council of the EU Ivan Bizjak.

Commissioner Malmstrom expressed content with the visa liberalisation process for Montenegro, underlining that the track record of the process has been flawless, which proves the success of this European policy.

She welcomed Montenegro’s readiness to work hard on judicial reform and the strengthening of the rule of law at this early stage, which is a good preparation for the future EU accession talks.

Director General Bizjak commended Montenegro’s efforts in reinforcing judicial independence and efficiency, especially in terms of reducing the backlog and boosting international cooperation on the fight against organised crime.

In this regard, Minister Radovic put special emphasis on the importance of the signing of extradition agreements with Croatia and Serbia and the new legal framework, which represent powerful weapons for fight against corruption and organised crime. He also acquainted his hosts with the results achieved in judicial reform and regional cooperation in the fight against organised crime as central objectives of the Judicial Reform Strategy of Montenegro.