“The first results achieved by the Government and the Parliament in the area of the rule of law have shown that all challenges can be overcome when there is a strong will, determination and sincere cooperation aimed at achieving the strategic state goals”, said Minister of European Affairs Maida Gorčević in a conversation with the ambassador Cyprus by Andreas Fotiou.
The Minister said that the Government has set very ambitious and demanding deadlines in order to fulfill all obligations from the European agenda as soon as possible and prepare Montenegro for membership by the end of its mandate.
“All chapters are important to us and we are committed to progress in all areas with the aim of improving the standard of living of citizens, but we are especially focused on the rule of law, where we expect an increased work dynamic by the summer in order to fulfill interim and obtain closing benchmarks in chapters 23 and 24. We wish to start closing negotiation chapters temporarily, based on good results,, after 12 years of conducting accession negotiations, and finally to begin bringing this process to an end,” said the minister.
She thanked Cyprus for its political and expert support for the European perspective of Montenegro and the countries of the region, stressing the significance of cooperation with member states, particularly regarding building capacitis for fulfilling obligations from the accession process.
Ambassador Fotiu conveyed the full support of the Republic of Cyprus in the continuation of the EU accession process, stressing the expectation that Montenegro will accelerate its progress and soon become the next member of the Union.
“We are pleased to see that the Government and the Assembly have made significant progress in the area of the rule of law at the beginning of their mandate. We want to see the persistence of good results that will ensure that you will soon take a place in the European family”, said the ambassador.
He said that it is important for Montenegro to use the favorable pointers coming from the EU in order to bring the main reform to an end.
The interlocutors exchanged opinions regarding the potentials of advancing cooperation between the two countries in several development areas, as well as the exchange of best practices in the European integration.
