Press release from the 72nd Cabinet session

At today's 72nd session, chaired by Prime Minister Milojko Spajić, the Montenegrin Cabinet adopted the Decision on amendments to the Decision on the establishment of part of the Joint Commission for the implementation of the Basic Agreement between Montenegro and the Holy See, as well as the Decision on amendments to the Decision on the establishment of the Council for monitoring the implementation of the Justice Reform Strategy 2024–2027. 

The Cabinet adopted the Information on the conclusion of the Loan Agreement between the European Union and Montenegro concerning special arrangements for the implementation of EU support to Montenegro under the Reform and Growth Facility and accepted the Loan Agreement. The European Commission's Growth Plan envisions a combination of grants and concessional loans totaling €6 billion for the period 2024–2027, of which €383.5 million is allocated to Montenegro—including approximately €110.1 million in grants and €273.4 million in concessional loans. The Loan Agreement defines the rights and obligations of the parties, as well as the timelines and conditions applicable to credit support. The credit instrument will be available through multiple periodic tranches, disbursed semi-annually until the first half of 2028, with the amount of each tranche depending on the fulfillment of reform milestones. As part of the Reform Agenda Programme, pre-financing and periodic tranches are available, with the prerequisite for obtaining pre-financing being the formal legal transition, i.e., the entry into force of the Accession Agreement to the Instrument and the Loan Agreement. The total amount of pre-financing will be up to 7% of the total available funds for Montenegro, or approximately €26.8 million, combining grant-based and credit-based financial support. The total available loan amount is €273,436,161, of which up to €19,140,531 represents pre-financed loan funds. Of the total allocated credit resources, 34.75% will be channeled through a joint fund established under the Western Balkans Investment Framework. 

In order to secure funds for financing credit support, the Commission will, on behalf of the EU, initiate the issuance of bonds or any other appropriate short-term and/or long-term financial transactions. Based on this arrangement, the loans will be offered under favourable conditions with a repayment period of up to 40 years from the date of signing the Loan Agreement, including a grace period of up to 10 years, meaning principal repayments will commence in 2034 and will be evenly distributed in equal installments over the remaining repayment period. 

The Cabinet adopted the Information on the fulfillment of commitments under the closing benchmark for Chapter 2 – Freedom of movement for workers. This is one of the key chapters in Montenegro’s negotiations with the EU, governing the rights of EU citizens and their families regarding free movement, residence, and employment within the European Union. The chapter ensures equal treatment for EU citizens compared to domestic citizens in areas such as labour market access, social benefits, and healthcare. The European Commission has informed Montenegro that Chapter 2 is expected to be closed in the second quarter of 2026. To achieve this, Montenegro must fulfill the closing benchmark requirement: "Montenegro must demonstrate that it has the necessary structures and capacities to properly implement the acquis related to the free movement of workers by the time of its accession to the EU." To meet these objectives, key EU directives and regulations relevant to Montenegrin legislation must be transposed into the national legal framework. Given the challenges previously identified in institutional coordination and legislative harmonization, the Government has instructed the relevant ministries to submit draft amendments to the applicable laws to the European Commission for review by 1 September 2025, along with alignment tables. 

The Cabinet adopted the Information on the status of the Đurđevića Tara Bridge reconstruction project, along with a Proposal for negotiations and the conclusion of a Supplementary Agreement on the implementation of the Donation Agreement for the project, supported by China. The Information recalls that, under the agreements on economic and technical cooperation between the Government of Montenegro and the Government of the People’s Republic of China, China has provided a non-repayable financial grant of 60 million Chinese yuan for the reconstruction of the Đurđevića Tara Bridge and other projects. Accordingly, the Embassy of China in Podgorica has submitted a Supplementary Agreement on the implementation of the Donation Agreement, specifying that the total costs covered by China—including testing, design, and construction—amount to 51.8 million Chinese yuan. The agreement also designates SHANDONG LUQIAO GROUP CO., LTD CHINA as the main contractor for the bridge reconstruction. The works are scheduled to begin in May 2025, with an expected construction period of eight months (excluding the winter season). However, the final construction schedule and official start date will be determined and communicated later. To oversee the implementation of this project, the Transport Administration will establish a Project Implementation Unit responsible for monitoring and supervising all aspects of the project. In this context, the Government approved the basis for negotiations and the conclusion of the Supplementary Agreement for the implementation of the Donation Agreement and accepted the text of the Supplementary Agreement. 

The Cabinet adopted the First semi-annual report on the implementation of Montenegro’s Reform Agenda for the EU Reform and Growth Facility 2024–2027. During discussions, it was noted that Montenegro has successfully achieved most of the planned steps under the Reform Agenda, securing a significant portion of the first disbursement tranche. The current assessment indicates that Montenegro has fully met 10 reform milestones, while four are partially fulfilled, pending further evaluation by the European Commission.