Montenegro hosts 18th conference of Chiefs of Stuff of US – Adriatic Charter (A-5)

Budva, Montenegro (12 June 2014) – The 18th conference of Chiefs of Stuff of the US – Adriatic Charter (A-5) took place in Budva earlier today.

President of Montenegro Filip Vujanović opened the conference and highlighted the importance of this initiative aimed at strengthening regional cooperation, adding that the signatory states of the Charter share common values and strategic interests.

Chief of Staff of the Montenegrin Army, Admiral Dragan Samardžić highlighted that Montenegro is willing to continue pursuing its strategic goals – NATO and EU integration. He underlined that the Armed Force of Montenegro has made strong efforts towards implementing the partnership objectives, which advanced the Army’s interoperability and capacities.

The conference’s participants confirmed their commitment to strengthening relations and fostering military cooperation, as well as to developing capacities for individual and regional involvement in future peace-keeping operations and projects within the NATO “Smart Defence” concept. They stressed the importance of regional cooperation in terms of natural disasters, having in mind recent floods and other natural disasters which caused huge material damages and loss of human lives.

Regional cooperation and improvement of current military capacities is crucial in responding to security threats and risks in the entire region, the officials concluded in Budva.