Montenegro is united around a common goal – membership in the European Union, which was demonstrated by the consensus in the Government, but also by the almost unanimous vote of the IBAR laws in the Assembly, said Minister of European Affairs Maida Gorčević at a meeting with the delegation of the Friendship Group of the National Council of Austria with Montenegro.
“Both the Government and the Assembly were elected by the citizens of Montenegro, and almost 80 percent of citizens see their future in the EU. Therefore, it is not surprising that the Government did everything in its power to fulfill the remaining temporary standards in chapters 23 and 24, and the Assembly voted 12 IBAR laws in a short period of time”, explained Gorčević.
She added that the whole society, as well as all political actors, are aware of the moment in which Montenegro is in when it comes to joining the EU and that this is an opportunity that we must not miss.
“We are looking forward to the Intergovernmental Conference within the framework of the Belgian Presidency, which was announced at the end of June, and we hope for a positive Report on the fulfillment of the temporary benchmarks for Chapters 23 and 24. After that, we have a lot of work to do on the preparation of a certain number of negotiation chapters for closing, already during the Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the EU” , Gorčević announced.
She thanked for the continuous cooperation and support that Montenegro receives from Austria, and added that she hopes that it will intensify in the coming period, especially when it comes to expert help in closing the chapter.
The president of the Friendship Group of the National Council of Austria with Montenegro, Maksimilian Kellner, said that he was pleasantly surprised by how ambitious and united Montenegro is when it comes to joining the EU, and that Austria strongly supports the reform processes and Montenegro’s European path.
He said that he hopes for even stronger cooperation between the two countries, as well as that the Austrian National Council is available for all the support and help that Montenegro needs.