PM Marković meets with EP President Tajani: Montenegro is progressing towards EU

Podgorica, Montenegro (19 July 2017) - Montenegro is progressing on its path to the EU and in these eforts it enjoys suport of the official Brussels, European officials and administration, said European Parliament President Antonio Tajani at a meeting with Montenegrin Prime Minister Duško Marković in Podgorica earlier today.

President Tajani said that the EU is wiling to integrate Montenegro in the shortest possible time, depending on the speed of fulfillment of tasks from our European agenda. He said that he will continue to back up Montenegro to join the EU, and that his visit to Podgorica is a strong message not only to the country, but also the region. Noting that the arrival of the European Parliament President will give additional impetus to the Montenegrin administration to work more intensively towards meeting the European agenda, Prime Minister Marković stresed that progress has been made in relation to the latest meeting of the two officials in February.

Today, Montenegro has 28 open and three temporarily closed chapters, and is strongly committed to meeting the criteria for opening the remaining negotiating chapters. The Government's intention is to pledge additional comitment not only to closing the chapters, but primarily to fostering European values and standards that will contribute to the changes in the Montenegrin society.

PM Marković also informed President Tajani about financial consolidation measures that produced positive results, emphasising that public finances were stabilised, favourable business environment preserved and that economic growth in the first quarter of the year was at the rate of 3.2%.

He added that it is necessary to further strengthen the economy, especially in the areas of tourism, energy and agriculture, and he agreed with President Tajani that it is important to further stimulate industrial production. President of the European Parliament said that he is personally dedicated to strengthening economic diplomacy and highlighted potentials of Montenegrin tourism that need to be further valorised.

By the same token, the Prime Minister underscored that investments worth over EUR 3 bilion were realised on the coast, but that the extraordinary resources in the north that should be used together with the increasing readiness of citizens to run businesses in that part of the country. Mr Tajani said that cooperation should be further enhanced in the defence industry, especially in light of the fact that Montenegro has recently become a member of NATO.

EP President particularly praised the role of Montenegro in the region - as a country that has always contributed to stability in the Balkans. He said that in the forthcoming period the country should continue pursuing such a policy, as, the two oficials agreed a stable Balkans means a safe and stable Europe.

In the context of reinforcing regional cooperation, Prime Minister Marković has positively assessed the recently held Summit in Trieste, but added that regional leaders must make their own decisions, find solutions to problems through dialogue and cooperation. Montenegro, the Prime Minister pointed out, remains committed to European values and interests and will continue to contribute to strengthening good neighbourly relations in the region.

OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER