Montenegro this week made further progress in its EU accession process, as the bloc’s current members agreed to start work on an accession treaty for the small Balkan nation.
On Wednesday, ambassadors from all EU member states said they had decided to set up an “ad hoc working party” to draft an accession pact, described as a “key milestone” and “a big step towards accession to the European Union” by European Council President António Costa.
At a Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) held on Friday in Montenegro’s capital city Podgorica, Minister of European Affairs Maida Gorčević said that alongside the closing of the negotiation chapters, the drafting of an accession pact heralds the “final lap of a fourteen-year marathon on the path towards the EU”. She added that the move marks the final phase of the negotiation process, with EU membership slated for 2028.
The JCC, established between the EU and Montenegrin civil society, is a platform that provides a civil society perspective within the EU’s institutional framework in relation to the Stabilisation and Association Agreement between the two parties.
Gorčević also highlighted the important role civil society plays in Montenegro’s accession process through its participation in working groups.
Speaking at the same event, the deputy head of the EU’s Delegation to Montenegro Riccardo Serri said “Montenegro has a historic opportunity to bring its European Union accession process to a close.”
“But there is no time to lose – progress depends on the implementation of concrete reforms in the coming months,” Serri added, noting that this process must be driven by institutions in collaboration with civil society.
Montenegro, alongside Albania, has been a frontrunner candidate to join the bloc since Croatia’s accession in 2013. It currently has a distinctive relationship with the European Union, as while its not part of the Eurozone, Montenegro has unilaterally adopted the Euro as its currency.
Accession talks have now been ongoing for around 14 years, though several key obstacles remained, which Montenegro is now trying to address.
The European Union has created so-called “clusters,” which are grouping of certain criteria, from taxation to environmental policy, that Montenegro needs to align with to receive EU membership.
Podgorica has so far concluded negotiations on 14 of the 35 clusters.
On Wednesday, European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos confirmed “Montenegro’s place inside the EU is now taking shape”.
“It also offers a chance to draw lessons from past enlargements and include new and stronger safeguards in future accession treaties to prevent backsliding on the rule of law and fundamental values,” said Kos.
Additional sources • AFP