Jourová congratulates Bečić on achievements

Deputy Prime Minister Aleksa Bečić and Minister of the Interior Danilo Šaranović met with Věra Jourová, Vice-President of the European Commission for Values and Transparency.

Following Deputy Prime Minister Bečić's introductory presentation on the achieved results in recent months, EC Vice-President Jourová expressed special satisfaction with the meeting with friends from Montenegro, stating, "Congratulations on the progress, it makes me particularly happy to hear how much you have achieved!"

The Deputy Prime Minister confirmed that the commitment and dedication to further accelerating the European path are imperative and key tasks of the current Government.

Our next goal is to obtain the IBAR, and we are truly working at an accelerated pace, very dedicatedly and diligently, to meet the remaining interim benchmarks. All nine draft laws in the field of media and the rule of law have been sent to the EC for opinion, numerous criteria have been met, the Ministry of the Interior has also completed the majority of the work, so we have an extremely good dynamics compared to the planned deadlines, and by obtaining the IBAR, Montenegro gets the opportunity to close several chapters this year and make a key step towards finalizing the process itself, said the Deputy Prime Minister.

Considering that Montenegro is included for the first time this year in the EU reporting mechanism on the rule of law in member states, Vice-President Jourová particularly emphasised that the report will recognise the results achieved by Montenegro in key areas of the judiciary, anti-corruption, and media freedoms, highlighting that the media are the pillar of democracy.

Discussing the new legislative projects in the field of media, Bečić emphasised that the draft laws were sent to the EC for opinion in mid-March, expressing the expectation that Montenegro will soon receive opinions so that the draft laws can be submitted to the Parliament.

Precise regulation of media registration issues, increasing allocations for the Media Pluralism Fund, combating hate speech and disinformation, strengthening the independence of the public broadcaster, tightening criteria for key managerial and leadership positions, ensuring the sustainability of local public broadcasters, protecting journalists and their sources, are some of the many innovations that media laws bring, noted the Deputy Prime Minister.

Finally, Jourová conveyed a message of support regarding the implementation of further reform processes on the path to Montenegro's EU membership, expressing, "gratitude for the comprehensive description and sincere congratulations on the progress you have made."