PM Marković, Chancellor Kurz: Montenegro continues to open negotiation chapters during Austrian presidency of EU

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Prime Minister Duško Marković and Federal Chancellor of the Republic of Austria Sebastian Kurz agreed in Budva that Montenegro should continue the opening of the remaining negotiating chapters during the Austrian presidency of the Council of the European Union.

"Montenegro is committed to further steps in the integration process, first of all to the opening of the remaining two chapters, and we hope to open chapter 27 during the Austrian presidency. This hope and expectation have been confirmed by the Chancellor during our meeting," Prime Minister Marković said at a joint press conference following the meeting during a conference organised by the Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro.

The Austrian Chancellor expressed his satisfaction with his visit to Montenegro, saying that the two countries cherish high-quality economic, cultural and political relation.

"That is why Montenegro is a strong partner to our country. As you know, Austria is a strong supporter of Montenegro and other countries in the Region on their path to the European Union. We support the reforms you implement, we support your path to the EU and we think that the EU will only be complete when the Western Balkans joins. We will use our Presidency of the Council to support you," Chancellor Kurz said, adding that he is hoping to progress in the remaining two chapters.



Prime Minister Marković said that the meeting confirmed the high-quality bilateral relations between Montenegro and Austria, and once again thanked Chancellor Kurz for commitment to the EU enlargement policy.

"I would like to thank the Austrian Presidency and Chancellor Kurz for the fact that the enlargement policy is high on Council's agenda, despite the serious issues on the agenda. Thanks to the European integration process and the Berlin Process, the economic and European perspective of the region is better than at any other moment in the last thirty years. The Chancellor understands that it is important to keep European perspective of the Western Balkans alive and that the process of joining is objective and based on the individual merits of candidate countries," PM Marković said.

The Prime Minister said that our continued progress in the field of rule of law, economic growth and macroeconomic stability show that Montenegro is willing and ready to accept the obligations of membership in the European Union in the near future.

"We want the member states to be fully convinced and sure that we will be ready member who will not bring problems but willingness to fight together for the values of the Union. We are doing this as a new NATO member, we are doing this in the region, we will do this when we become a member of the EU," Prime Minister Marković noted.



PUBLIC RELATIONS SERVICE OF THE GOVERNMENT OF MONTENEGRO

PHOTO: Meeting and press conference of PM Duško Marković and Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz

VIDEO: https://youtu.be/AmnoEemHYIs