USA continues to provide assistance to Montenegro's judiciary reform

Podgorica, Montenegro (6 September 2013) – Montenegro’s Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Duško Marković and US Ambassador to Montenegro Sue K. Brown signed an amendment to the Agreement on Law Enforcement, which implies continued US support in strengthening the rule of law in Montenegro until the end of 2014.

The initial agreement was signed by DPM Marković and Ambassador Sue K. Brown on 8 July 2011. The agreement allowed the State Department’s Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) to establish two support programs in Montenegro, the Resident Legal Advisor Programme and the International Criminal Investigative Training and Assistance Programme (ICITAP). The goal of these programmes is to strengthen the rule of law in Montenegro, provide support in building judicial institutions' capacity in combating organised crime and corruption, and to increase public confidence in their work. This support is in line with Montenegro’s aspirations to continue its path towards Euro-Atlantic integration.

These two programs were designed to provide training programmes, technical support, equipment and expertise to the Office of the Special Prosecutor for Organised Crime, Corruption, War Crimes and Terrorism, the Special Investigation Team, the Center for Training of Judicial Office Holders, the Ministry of Justice, the Office of Supreme State Prosecutor and the Police Authority. The ultimate beneficiaries of these programs are judges, prosecutors, lawyers, police officers and citizens of Montenegro.